/ 


UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


SCHOOL  OF  LAW 
LIBRARY 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2008  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/codeofpublicinstOOnewy 


A/<u>  \otlt  (Shit)      L»i,  shtu+*st  *+c 


n 


CODE 


PUBLIC  INSTRUCTION 


STATE  OF  NEW-YORK. 


PREPARED    AND    PUBLISHED    BY    ORDER    OF   THE    LEGISLATURE, 
UNDER    THE    DIRECTION    OP    THE 

SUPERINTENDENT  OF  PUBLIC  INSTRUCTION. 


ALBANY : 

WEED,  PARSONS  AND  COMPANY,  PRINTERS. 
1856. 


3 


THIS  VOLUME  BELONGS  TO  THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE  SCHOOL  DISTRICT 
TO  WHICH  IT  IS  SENT.  IT  IS  TO  BE  KEPT,  HOWEVER,  IN  THE  CUSTODY 
OF  THE  DISTRICT  CLERK,  AND  DELIVERED  BY  HIM  TO  ANY  TAXABLE 
INHABITANT  OR  VOTER  OF  THE  DISTRICT,  TO  BE  RETAINED  NOT 
EXCEEDING  THREE  DAYS  ;  EXCEPT  THAT  WHEN  ANY  ANNUAL,  SPECIAL 
OR  ADJOURNED  DISTRICT  MEETING  IS  TO  TAKE  PLACE  WITHIN  FIVE 
DAYS,  THIS  BOOK  IS  NOT  TO  BE  DELIVERED  TO  ANY  INHABITANT,  BUT 
MUST  BE  RETAINED  BY  THE  CLERK  AND  PRODUCED  BY  HIM  AT  SUCH 
MEETING  FOR  CONSULTATION  BY  THE  VOTERS. 

WHEN  SENT  TO  ANY  SCHOOL  OFFICER,  HE  HOLDS  THE  SAME  ONLY 
IN  HIS  OFFICIAL  CAPACITY,  AND  MUST  DELIVER  IT  ON  THE  EXPIRATION 
OF  HIS  TERM  TO  HIS  SUCCESSOR  IN  OFFICE. 


uf 


PREFACE. 


The  following  pages  contain  a  selection  from  the  decisions  rendered  by 
the  Superintendents  of  Common  Schools,  and  their  successor,  the  under- 
signed Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  since  the  publication  of  the 
volume  known  as  Common  School  Decisions,  by  Gen.  Dix,  in  1837. 
Very  many  of  the  decisions  made  in  the  intervening  period  relate  to 
the  construction  of  statutes  which  have  been  so  materially  changed  as 
to  render  their  interpretation  no  longer  important  to  the  school  officers. 
Many  more  were  devoted  to  the  discussion  of  questions  relating  to  the 
expediency  of  proposed  alterations  in  the  boundaries  of  districts,  the 
location  of  school-houses,  and  other  subjects  of  merely  local  interest. 
Those  only  have  been  reported  which  convey  instruction  upon  points 
which  the  experience  of  the  department  has  shown  most  frequently  to 
give  rise  to  doubts  and  misunderstanding,  and  to  embarrass  the  practical 
administration  of  our  school  system.  Of  such  points  there  are  very  few 
which  have  not  been  decided  in  numerous  cases,  but  the  repetition  of 
similar  decisions  has  been  avoided  as  far  as  practicable. 

The  legislature  having  directed  the  publication  and  distribution  of 
the  laws  relating  to  schools  in  the  same  volume  with  a  Digest  of  the 
Decisions  of  the  State  Superintendents,  while  the  latter  was  in  prepara- 
tion, it  seemed  advisable  to  arrange,  in  the  form  of  comments  upon 
the  various  sections  of  the  statutes,  much  that  would  otherwise  have 
found  a  place  in  the  Digest.  Greater  facility  of  reference  was  thus 
secured,  and  the  opportunity  offered  of  giving  such  instructions  as  may 
serve  to  anticipate  and  prevent  the  most  common  occasions  of  difficulty. 
These  may  seem  to  the  intelligent  reader  as  in  many  instances  unneces- 
sarily minute,  and  as  presupposing  an  almost  incredible  inattention  on 
the  part  of  school  officers  to  the  ordinary  forms  of  business  and  to  the 

767845 


IV  PREFACE. 

precautions  against  litigation,  which  every  prudent  man  is  in  the  habit 
of  observing.  The  experience  of  the  department,  however,  suggests  the 
apprehension  that  the  error  will  be  found  rather  on  the  side  of  omission 
than  in  giving  information  that  is  not  required.  The  changes  in  the 
law  affecting  the  local  administration  of  district  affairs  have  been  very 
trifling,  but  the  constant  repetition  of  inquiries  in  regard  to  the  modes 
of  proceeding  under  it,  indicates  that  the  exposition  cannot  be  made  too 
specific  or  minute  for  the  practical  wants  of  a  class  of  officers  so 
frequently  changing,  and  so  destitute  of  facilities  for  obtaining  legal 
advice,  as  those  of  the  school  districts. 

It  is  but  just  to  add  that  the  legal  comments,  which  will  be  found 
under  the  various  sections  of  the  laws,  have  been  the  work  of  E.  Peshine 
Smith,  Esq.,  Deputy  Superintendent,  and  that  the  whole  work  has 
received  the  benefit  of  his  experience  in  the  department,  and  of  his  legal 
knowledge  and  acumen. 

V.  M.  RICE, 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction. 

Albany,  November  25,  1856. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS 

OF 

STATE  SUPERINTENDENTS. 


Commissioners  cannot  declare  void  proceedings  of  their  predecessors,  though 
they  may  annul,  or  rescind  them. 

The  town  superintendents  of  the  towns  of  Seneca,  Gorham  and  Benton, 
declared  illegal  the  proceedings  of  a  previous  board,  forming  District  No. 
13,  from  parts  of  the  said  three  towns,  for  an  alleged  want  of  authority. 
The  district,  if  legally  organized,  might  have  been  annulled,  but  they 
had  not  power  to  declare  void  the  proceedings  of  their  predecessors. 
The  law  confers  no  such  power  upon  them.  The  question  of  illegality 
must  be  referred  to  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  or  deter- 
mined by  some  other  competent  tribunal. 

Per  Dix,  August  19,  1837. 

An  adjourned  meeting  cannot  rescind  an  election  of  district  officers. 
Per  Dix,  November  18,  1837. 

Nor  can  an  officer,  once  elected,  be  displaced  by  vote  of  district. 
Per  Dix,  November  9,  1838. 

Non-resident  children  attending  the  district  school,  without  any 
previous  contract  or  agreement  with  the  trustees,  are  on  the  same  terms 
as  other  children. 

Per  Dix,  October  28,  1837. 

A  tax  may  be  levied  to  finish  the  erection  of  a  school-house  com  - 
menced  by  subscription,  provided  the  district  own  the  site  ;  if  not,  the 
subscribers  must  first  relinquish  their  title  to  the  district. 

Per  Dix,  May  11,  1838. 

Notice  of  alteration  of  a  district  should  be  served  on  dissenting 
trustee. 

Per  Dix,  February  17,  1838. 

nDlGEST.l  1 


2  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Notices  should  be  served  on  opposing  and  not  on  consenting  parties. 
Per  Dix,  April  9  1838. 

Public  money  cannot  be  paid  for  wages  of  a  past  year.  In  other 
words,  public  money  apportioned  for  any  year,  must  be  expended  for 
services  performed  within  that  year. 

Per  Dix,  March  26,  1838. 

Any  lawful  meeting  may,  by  vote,  appropriate  the  public  money  on 
hand  or  to  be  received. 

Notice  of  meetings  should  specify  the  objects  for  which  they  aro 
called  ;  but  omission  is  not  fatal.     An  aggrieved  party  may  appeal. 

Per  Dix,  April  20,  1838. 
Per  Spencer,  March  7,  1840. 

Inhabitants  have  no  right  to  reelect  against  his  will,  a  person  whose  resignation 
has  been  accepted. 

Daniel  Lawrence,  whose  resignation  of  the  office  of  trustee  of  District 
No.  2,  Hamburgh,  had  been  accepted  by  three  justices  of  the  peace  of 
said  town,  was  subsequently  reelected. 

The  election  was  set  aside  on  appeal.  The  law  having  constituted 
the  justices  sole  judges  of  the  propriety  of  a  resignation,  their  decision 
is  final,  and  the  inhabitants  have  no  right  to  disregard  it. 

Per  Dix,  May  9,  1838. 

A  teacher  who  does  not  keep  a  proper  list  of  pupils  and  their  attendance,  cannot 
recover  his  wages.  The  teacher's  list  is  the  basis  of  a  rate  bill,  which  the 
trustees  cannot  legally  make  without  it. 

Per  Dix,  April  21,  1838. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  6,  Coxsackie,  refused  to  pay  Daniel 
Searles,  a  certain  balance  claimed  by  him  as  due  for  his  services  as 
teacher.  He  admitted  that  he  could  not  furnish  them  with  an  attend- 
ance list,  as  required  by  law,  but  alleged  that  the  former  trustees  had 
directed  him  to  charge  different  rates  of  tuition  for  different  studies. 
Held,  that  the  contract  was  illegal,  and  could  not  be  enforced  against, 
their  successors.  No  legal  rate-bill  could  be  made  out,  for  want  of  a 
legal  attendance  list. 

Per  Spencer,  July  7,  1841. 

Verbal   notice  to  clerk  to   call  a  district  meeting  is  sufficient.     A 
trustee  who  attends  cannot  object  that  he  did  not  authorize  the  call. 
Per  Dix,  November  24,  1838. 

In  an  appeal  to  set  aside  the  proceedings  of  a  meeting  on  account  of 
illegal  voting  it  is  not  enough  to  allege  that  a  man  was  not  a  legal 
voter.     The  specific  grounds  of  disqualification  should  be  set  forth. 
Per  Dix,  December  1,  1838. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  9 

Trustees  may  contract  with  a  teacher  to  pay  him  any  stipulated  sum 
for  wages  ;  but  a  tax,  or  rate  bill,  cannot  be  levied  for  his  board  separately, 
as  contradistinguished  from  the  remainder  of  his  wages,  lie  must 
provide  for  his  own  board,  or  it  must  be  paid  for  by  the  voluntary  con- 
tributions of  the  inhabitants. 

Per  Dix,  December  15,  1838. 

A  pupil  should  not  be  dismissed  from  school,  except  for  a  degree  of 
moral  depravity,  which  would  render  his  association  dangerous  to  other 
scholars,  or  for  violent  insubordination  which  would  render  it  impracti- 
cable to  maintain  discipline  and  order. 

Per  Dix,  January  19,  1839. 

A  school  district  cannot  by  vote  authorize  trustees  to  bori'ow  money 
on  its  credit.  If  the  trustees  advance  money  to  purchase  a  library,  they 
may  repay  themselves  out  of  money  voted  by  tax  for  that  purpose,  or 
received  from  the  state,  but  they  cannot  charge  interest. 

A  tax  for  contingent  expenses  is  erroneous ;  but  the  district  may 
vote  to  raise  a  specified  sum,  to  be  expended  in  the  purchase  of  enume- 
rated articles. 

Per  Spencer,  March  29,  1839. 

A  two  story  school-house  may  be  built  upon  land  leased,  with  the  agreement 
that  the  rent,  or  consideration  of  the  grant,  shall  be  the  use  by  th»  lessor, 
of  the  upper  story  out  of  school  hours. 

The  consistory  of  the  Reformed  Dutch  Church,  in  the  town  of  Green- 
bush,  granted  to  District  No.  2,  of  said  town,  a  lot  of  land  for  a  school- 
house  site,  so  long  as  the  same  should  be  used  for  that  purpose,  reserving 
an  annual  rent.  Subsequent  to  the  execution  of  the  lease,  an  agreement 
was  entered  into  between  the  trustees  and  the  consistory,  that  the 
school-house  should  be  built  with  two  stories,  and  that  when  the  upper 
story  was  not  wanted  for  school  purposes,  the  consistory  might  use  it, 
and  such  use,  while  permitted,  should  be  in  full  payment  for  the  rent. 
With  full  knowledge  of  this  agreement,  the  district,  33  to  7,  voted  to 
raise  a  tax  of  $400,  to  procure  the  site  and  erect  a  school-house.  Held, 
that  the  use  of  the  upper  story,  by  the  consistory,  was  a  fair  equivalent 
for  the  rent,  and  that  the  agreement  was  not  improper  or  illegal. 

Per  Spencer,  April  23,  1839. 

The  public  money  must  be  applied  to  the  payment  of  the  wages  of 
qualified  teachers,  and  for  no  other  purposes.  Debts  due  the  district,  or 
bought  by  the  trustees,  cannot  be  offset  against  the  wages.  Nothing 
but  payment  to,  or  on  the  order  of,  the  teacher  is  a  compliance  with  the 
law. 

Per  Spencer,  April  23,  1839. 

In  the  absence  of  any  legal  provision  on  the  subject,  the  district  may 
Sx  the  date  of  their  annual  meeting,  three,  six,  or  nine  months,  or  any 


4  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

time  within  the  ensuing  year.  The  district  officers,  however,  should 
not  be  elected  until  the  time  is  fixed,  in  order  to  prevent  any  dispute  as 
to  their  term  of  office. 

Ter  Spencer,  May  6,  1839. 

School  may  be  opened  with  prayers,  provided  that  it  he  done  before  school  hours, 
and  that  there  be  no  compulsion  to  enforce  attendance. 

In  an  appeal  to  the  superintendent,  certain  inhabitants  of  District 
No.  15,  Barre,  complained  that  the  teacher,  with  the  permission  of  the 
trustees,  "  made  prayer  part  of  school  discipline."  The  trustees  replied 
that  they  had  permitted  the  teacher  to  have  prayers,  on  condition  that 
they  should  be  had  previous  to  school  hours,  and  they  alleged  that  he 
did  not  occupy  school  hours.  The  superintendent  dismissed  the  appeal, 
with  the  following  remarks  : 

"  In  this  conduct  of  the  trustees,  the  superintendent  can  perceive  no 
cause  of  complaint.  Both  parties  have  rights ;  the  one  to  bring  up 
their  children  in  the  practice  of  publicly  thanking  their  Creator  for  his 
protection,  and  invoking  his  blessing ,  the  other,  of  declining  in  behalf 
of  their  children,  the  religious  services  of  any  person  in  whose  creed 
they  may  not  concur,  or  for  other  reasons  satisfactory  to  themselves. 
These  rights  are  reciprocal,  and  should  be  protected  equally ;  ana 
neither  should  interfere  with  the  other.  Those  who  desire  that  their 
children  should  engage  in  public  prayer,  have  no  right  to  compel  other 
children  to  unite  in  the  exercise,  against  the  wishes  of  their  parents. 
Nor  have  those  who  object  to  the  time,  place  or  manner  of  praying,  or 
to  the  person  who  conducts  the  exercises,  a  right  to  deprive  the  other 
class  of  the  opportunity  of  habituating  their  children  to  what  they  con- 
ceive an  imperious  duty.  Neither  the  common  school  system,  nor  any 
other  social  system,  can  be  maintained,  unless  the  conscientious  views  of 
all  are  equally  respected.  The  simple  rule,  so  to  exercise  your  own 
rights,  as  not  to  infringe  on  those  of  others,  will  preserve  equal  justice 
among  all,  promote  harmony,  and  insure  success  to  our  schools.  In  the 
present  case,  the  superintendent  thinks  the  trustees  had  lawful  right  to 
permit  the  teacher  to  commence  the  business  of  the  day  by  public 
prayer,  with  the  children  of  such  parents  as  desired  it ;  and  they  were 
also  right  in  directing  that  such  exercises  should  not  take  place  during 
school  hours,  nor  form  a  part  of  school  discipline." 

Another  branch  of  this  first  question  is,  whether  the  teacher  has  a 
right  to  compel  the  children  to  kneel,  during  prayer,  or  to  dispense  with 
their  ordinary  business. 

The  answer  already  given  proceeds  upon  the  principle  that  prayer  is 
no  part  of  the  business  of  a  common  school,  but  that  parents  may  place 
their  children  under  the  superintendence  and  government  of  a  teacher 
for  that  purpose.  Of  course  his  jurisdiction  would  extend  to  that  only. 
But  others  have  no  right  to  disturb  the  performance  of  what  is  con- 
sidered a  sacred  duty.  As  the  one  class  is  required  to  abstain  from 
all  attempts  to  compel  the  children  of  the  other  class  to  engage  in  an 
exercise  which  the  latter  disapprove,  so  the  latter  should  abstain  from 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  5 

interrupting  such  exercise,  and  should  instruct  their  children,  accord- 
ingly, not  to  enter  the  school  room,  until  the  usual  hour  of  commencing 
school,  and  not  to  disturb  those  within  by  any  noise,  or  other  conduct 
calculated  to  annoy  them.  And  the  teacher  should  allow  the  children 
of  all  parents,  who  do  not  desire  them  to  engage  in  prayer,  to  with- 
draw from  the  room,  or  to  absent  themselves  from  it.  But  if  they 
come  into  the  room  before  the  usual  school  hours,  and  choose  to  remain 
there  during  prayer,  they  must  preserve  the  order  and  decorum  befitting 
such  an  occasion. 

Per  Spencer,  May  13,  1839. 

District  officers  cease  to  be  such,  when  set  off  from  an  old  district  to  a  new  one. 

If  a  new  district  (15)  was  erected  out  of  No.  2,  and  No.  2  was  not 
declared  a  new  district,  it  is  in  law  the  same  district,  although  its  terri 
tory  may  be  diminished ;  and  the  trustees  and  officers  in  office  at  the 
time  of  the  division,  and  residing  in  No.  2,  will  continue  such  during 
the  year  for  which  they  were  elected.  But  such  of  them  as  reside  in 
District  No.  15,  and  do  not  change  their  residence  to  No.  2,  cease  to  be 
officers  of  No.  2,  by  virtue  of  the  provision  of  the  statute,  which  declares 
in  reference  to  a  local  officer,  that  a  vacancy  is  created  by  an  incumbent 
ceasing  to  be  an  inhabitant  of  the  district  for  which  he  was  appointed. 

Per  Spencer,  May  15,  1839. 

A  person  elected  at  the  same  time,  clerk  and  trustee,  and  accepting 
the  office  of  trustee,  vacates  the  clerkship,  and  a  new  clerk  must  be 
elected  or  appointed  in  his  place. 

Per  Spencer,  May  22,  1839. 

Trustees  are  bound  to  open  a  district  school,  whenever  the  inhabitants  or  any  of 
them,  are  willing  to  bear  the  expense,  and  the  district  cannot  abridge  then 
powers. 

One  inhabitant  with  four  children,  and  another  with  two  children, 
requested  the  trustees  of  District  No.  12,  Vernon  and  Stockbridge,  to  open 
a  summer  school.  The  trustees  refused,  assigning  as  a  reason  that  they 
desired  a  division  of  the  district,  and  were  disposed  to  render  the  pre- 
sent organization  as  little  beneficial  as  possible. 

It  was  held  that  it  was  their  duty  to  have  a  school  kept  whenever 
there  was  a  number  of  children  to  attend,  sufficient  to  defray  the 
expense  ;  or  if  a  portion  of  the  public  money  had  been  assigned  to  each 
term,  whenever  the  public  money  and  rate-bills  would  defray  the 
expense.  The  duty  is  as  applicable  to  summer  as  to  winter  schools. 
The  very  object  and  business  of  their  office  is  to  provide  schools,  and  no 
district  meeting  can  abridge  their  powers,  or  relieve  them  from  the  per- 
formance of  their  duty. 

Per  Spencer,  July  17,  1839. 


6  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

The  dissolution,  or  annulling,  of  a  district  is  not  an  alteration. 

When  an  alteration  is  made,  the  presumption  arises  that  something 
of  the  original  remains.  Its  total  destruction  precludes  such  a  pre- 
sumption. 

Under  the  constitution  of  1822,  the  legislature  could  not  pass  any  law 
creating,  continuing,  altering,  or  renewing  any  body  politic  or  corporate 
without  a  vote  of  two-thirds  in  its  favor. 

The  legislature  repeatedly  passed  laws  repealing  charters,  on  the  ground 
that  a  repeal  was  not  an  alteration,  and  that  such  repeal  did  not  come 
within  the  spirit  of  the  provision,  any  more  than  it  did  within  its  letter. 
Per  Spencer,  July  26,  1839. 

A  school  district  cannot  delegate  the  power  to  select  a  school-house  site.     A  de- 
signation should  be  specific  as  to  location  and  size. 

The  inhabitants  of  District  No.  15,  in  the  town  of  Smyrna,  at  their 
first  meeting,  resolved  that  the  trustees  purchase  a  site  for  the  school- 
house,  on  the  corner  of  Benjamin  Hartwell's  land,  or  on  Seth  Shep 
ard's  land  where  the  cooper's  shop  now  stands. 

The  trustees  selected  the  corner  of  Benjamin  Hartwell's  land,  paid 
forty  dollars  for  the  site,  and  contracted  for  the  erection  of  a  house. 

They  then  called  a  special  meeting,  for  the  purpose  of  ratifying  what 
they  had  done,  and  raising  money  to  finish  the  house. 

The  meeting,  by  a  vote  of  26  to  12,  refused  to  ratify  their  selection, 
and  passed  a  resolution  that  the  site  should  be  "  at  a  certain  beech  tree 
in  widow  Brown's  hollow." 

The  supreme  court,  in  the  case  of  Benjamin  vs.  Hall,  17  Wendell, 
437,  decided  that  the  district  could  not  delegate  the  power  to  designate 
a  school-house  site  to  the  trustees.  It  cannot  make  any  difference 
whether  a  general  authority  to  select  is  given,  or  whether  the  authority 
is  to  choose  between  two  points. 

The  designation  made  by  the  special  meeting  is  too  indefinite.  Ver- 
bal explanations,  not  a  part  of  the  record,  though  given  at  the  meeting, 
cannot  be  permitted  to  locate  the  spot.  The  vote  was  utterly  void  for 
uncertainty. 

Per  Spencer,  August  26,  1839. 

Any  subsequent  resolution,  directly,  or  necessarily  repugnant,  to  a 
previous  one,  repeals  it. 

Per  Spencer,  September  7,  1839. 

That  part  of  the  district  library,  purchased  with  money  raised  by  tax 
upon  the  district,  may  be  sold. 

Per  Spencer,  September  17,  1839. 

Three  qualified  voters  constitute  a  valid  meeting. 

The  annual  meeting  of  District  No.  9,  Erin,  and  No.  12,  Elmira,  in 
1839,  was  duly  notified  and  held,   at  the  time  and  place  appointed  at 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  1 

the  last  preceding  annual  meeting.  The  district  clerk  and  two  other 
persons  only  were  present.  The  proceedings  of  the  meeting  were 
regular.  The  law  has  not  specified  what  number  shall  constitute  a 
district  meeting,  and  when  the  notice  has  been  fair  and  public,  and  the 
meeting  held  at  the  usual  time  and  place,  and  the  proceedings  regular, 
it  must  be  deemed  valid. 

Per  Spencer,  October  22,  1839. 

A  trustee  cannot  be  librarian. 

A  librarian  is  subject  to  the  direction  of  the  trustees,  and  responsible 
to  them.  There  is  an  incongruity  in  a  man  being  subject  and  responsible 
to  himself.  There  is  the  same  incompatibility  between  the  offices  of 
librarian  and  trustee,  as  collector  and  trustee. 

Per  Spencer,  November  25,  1839. 

When  a  school-house  is  so  decayed  as  to  be  no  longer  adapted  to  its 
purposes,  the  district  may  raise  money  by  tax  to  build  a  new  one,  by  a 
majority  vote,  and  without  a  special  notice  of  the  intent  to  propose  such 
a  tax,  at  an  annual  or  a  special  meeting. 

Per  Spencer,  January  15,  1840. 

The  occupancy  of  a  school-house  sufficient  notice  to  purchaser  of  land 

Twenty  years  previous  to  the  date  of  appeal,  District  No.  6,  Linck- 
laen,  had  taken  a  lease  of  a  site  for  the  school-house,  for  as  long  a  period 
as  the  same  should  be  occupied  for  a  district  school.  James  S.  Graves 
purchased  the  land  and  appurtenances,  without  any  reservation,  and 
forbade  the  trustees  from  entering  upon  it,  or  from  occupying  the 
school-house. 

Mr.  Graves  purchased  the  land  subject  to  the  lease,  and  the  fact  that 
the  land  was  occupied  by  the  district  for  a  school-house  and  site,  was 
sufficient  notice  to  him.  The  district  has  a  rightful  claim  to  the  posses- 
sion of  the  land  under  the  lease,  and  should  take  legal  measures  to  assert 
their  right.  The  occupancy  is  sufficient  notice  to  the  purchaser  of  the 
title  of  the  district,  and  he  is  bound  to  ascertain  it  at  his  peril,  notwith- 
standing the  omission  to  put  the  lease  upon  record. 

Per  Spencer,  January  23,  1840 

Trustees  are  not  empowered  to  receive  a  note  in  payment  for  a  tax  imposed  by 
them,  and  cannot  maintain  an  action  to  enforce  payment. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  8,  in  the  town  of  Mentz,  took  a  note  from 
S.  P.  Clark  in  payment  of  a  tax  assessed  upon  his  farm.  Upon  appeal 
it  appeared  that  Mr.  Clark  had  been  erroneously  taxed  in  District  No. 
8,  while  he  was  yet  a  resident  of  District  No.  V.  Held  that  the  note 
was  void,  and  could  not  be  collected,  even  if  the  tax  had  been  legally 
assessed. 

Per  Spencer,  March  24,  1840. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 


An  order  by  a  board  of  officers  of  two  towns,  dissolving  a  joint  district,  and 
setting  off  a  part  thereof  to  a  district  partly  in  a  third  town,  valid  as  to  dis- 
solution, but  illegal  as  to  annexing  part  to  district  partly  in  third  town. 

The  commissioners  of  Argyle  and  Fort  Edward,  on  the  31st  Decem- 
ber, 1838,  dissolved  joint  District  No.  4,  in  said  towns,  and  annexed  one 
portion  thereof  to  district  No.  15,  in  Argyle,  and  the  residue  to  District 
No.  3,  in  the  town  of  Fort  Edward.  District  No.  3,  was  a  joint  dis- 
trict, partly  in  Fort  Edward  and  partly  in  Greenwich  ;  and  the  commis- 
sioners of  the  latter  town  were  not  notified  of  the  meeting  and  did  not 
attend.  There  may  be  cases  where  an  order,  void  in  part,  is  void  alto- 
gether. In  this  the  commissioners  of  Argyle  and  Fort  Edward  had 
jurisdiction  over  District  No.  4,  but  not  over  District  No.  3.  The  order 
for  the  dissolution  of  District  No.  4,  is  therefore  valid,  and  having  no 
necessary  connection  with  that  part  of  the  order  annexing  a  part  thereof  to 
District  No.  3,  must  stand,  while  the  part  of  the  order  affecting  District 
No.  3,  is  void,  for  want  of  jurisdiction. 

Per  Spencer,  May  21,  1840. 

The  same  principle  is  established  in  another  case. 

On  the  20th  of  April,  1840,  the  commissioners  of  the  towns  of  New- 
stead  and  Clarence,  set  off  from  joint  District  No.  4,  in  Clarence  and  2 
in  Newstead,  all  that  part  of  the  district  lying  in  the  town  of  Clarence. 

Subsequently,  and  on  the  same  day,  the  commissioners  of  Clarence 
formed  District  No.  19,  in  said  town,  out  of  the  territory  so  set  off,  and 
a  portion  of  District  No.  5  in  the  same  town  ;  and  also  the  farms  of 
four  persons  set  off  on  the  same  day  by  the  commissioners  of  Clarence 
and  Lancaster  from  two  joint  districts  in  said  towns. 

The  acts  of  the  commissioners  were  strictly  in  compliance  with  the 
law.  A  joint  board  was  first  formed  and  the  inhabitants  intended  to  be 
annexed  to  the  new  district  were  set  off  from  the  joint  districts.  Then 
the  commissioners  of  Clarence  within  whose  separate  jurisdiction  the 
inhabitants  so  detached  reverted,  very  properly  annexed  them  to  the 
new  district.  This  was  the  true  mode  of  procedure.  The  powers  of 
the  joint  board  ceased  when  the  territory  ceased  to  be  a  joint  district. 

Per  Spencer,  June  18,  1840. 

Notice  of  alteration  must  be  given  before  order  can  take  effect. 

"When  a  district  has  been  altered  without  the  previous  consent  of  the 
trustees,  a  notice  in  writing  of  the  alteration  must  be  served  upon  them. 
This  notice  is  essential  to  the  completion  of  the  transaction,  as  without 
it  the  order  cannot  take  effect.  It  cannot  be  presumed  that  the  notice 
has  been  given  because  the  order  has  been  made.  The  doctrine  of 
presumption  applies  only  to  those  cases  where  the  act  in  question  should 
have  been  performed  in  the  regular  and  ordinary  course,  previous  to  the 
final  act,  and  was  necessarily  incidental  to  it ;  as  after  a  sale  upon 
execution,  a  levy  will  be  presumed.     A  notice  in  writing  is  a  condition 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  9 

subsequent  to  an  order  for  alteration,  and  until  it  is  given  the  order  lies 

in  abeyance,  and  without  effect. 

Per  Spencer,  July  27,  1840. 

The  establishment  of  a  district  by  a  decision  upon  appeal  to  the 
department,  is  final  and  conclusive ;  and  the  district  is  not  subject  to 
alteration  by  the  local  authorities,  while  the  circumstances  remain 
unchanged.  But  it  is  absurd  to  contend  that  when  the  circumstances 
under  which  a  decision  is  pronounced,  have  materially  changed,  and 
after  the  districts  or  either  of  them  have  increased  or  diminished  in 
territory,  number  or  valuation,  the  local  authorities  are  precluded  from 
interference,  by  the  conclusive  operation  of  a  decision,  founded  on  an 
entirely  different  state  of  facts.  Such  a  doctrine  would  be  entirely 
inconsistent  with  reason  and  good  sense. 

Per  Spencer,  September  24,  1840. 

The  county  treasurer  is  bound  to  pay  over  to  each  town  all  the  school 
money  apportioned  to  it  and  received  by  him  from  the  state  treasury. 
He  cannot  retain  a  per  centage  for  receiving  and  disbursing,  out  of  the 
money  in  his  hands.  Whatever  claim  he  has  is  a  charge  against  the 
county. 

Per  Spencer,  October  12,  1840. 

The  trustees  are  bound  to  call  district  meetings  when  requested  to  do  so  by  a 
respectable  number  of  inhabitants  for  a  legitimate  object. 

One  of  the  trustees  of  District  No.  19,  partly  in  Liecester  and  partly 
in  Perry,  resigned  his  office,  and  subsequently  united  with  fifteen  others 
in  a  petition  to  the  remaining  trustees  to  call  a  special  meeting  to  fill 
the  vacancy,  and  to  transact  such  other  business  as  might  be  deemed 
necessary. 

The  trustees  declined  to  make  the  call  on  the  ground  that  they  were 
apprehensive  that  the  meeting  if  called,  might  make  such  disposition 
of  the  public  money  as  would  interfere  with  previous  arrangements, 
and  prove  detrimental  to  the  school  then  in  operation. 

The  filling  of  an  existing  vacancy  was  a  proper  and  legal  purpose,  and 
the  meeting,  if  called  within  thirty  days  after  the  happening  of  the 
vacancy,  might  have  elected  a  person.  Before  an  appeal  could  be 
decided,  the  time  within  which  the  inhabitants  can  be  called  together, 
will  have  expired,  and  the  vacancy  must  be  filled  by  appointment. 
The  trustees  have  no  right  to  conjecture  that  a  meeting  will  adopt 
measures  to  injure  the  school.  The  principle  cannot  be  sanctioned  for 
a  moment,  that  the  trustees  may  refuse  to  call  a  meeting  of  the  inhabi- 
tants, upon  the  ground  that  the  latter  may  adopt  measures  at  variance 
with  the  views  of  the  former,  as  to  the  interests  and  welfare  of  the 
district.  The  trustees  are  the  representatives  and  servants  of  the  dis- 
trict, bound  to  carry  out  and  obey  the  will  of  the  inhabitants,  when 

TDioest.]  2 


10  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

legally  expressed,  and  not  warranted  in  attempting  in  any  manner  to 
thwart  their  wishes. 

Per  Spencer,  December  23,  1840. 

Trustees  cannot  dismiss  a  teacher,  on  the  ground  that  some  of  the  inhabitants  are 
dissatisfied  with  him,  while  they  themselves  are  not  dissatisfied. 

James  M.  Grooty  was  employed  to  teach  school  in  District  No.  2, 
New  Baltimore,  for  five  months,  at  $11  a  month,  on  condition  that  if 
the  trustees  should  find  any  fault  with  him  at  the  end  of  a  month,  they 
were  to  notify  him,  pay  him  for  the  month's  services,  and  dismiss  him. 
He  taught  school  from  the  9th  November  to  the  21st  day  of  January, 
when  the  trustees  dismissed  him,  on  the  ground  of  dissatisfaction  on  the 
part  of  some  of  the  inhabitants,  at  the  same  time  publicly  stating  that 
they  had  no  cause  of  complaint. 

One  month  was  ample  time  to  discover  faults  of  character,  discipline, 
government  and  modes  of  teaching,  and  if  the  trustees  did  not,  within 
that  time,  give  Mr.  Grooty  notice,  they  could  not  subsequently  dismiss  him, 
and  release  themselves  from  their  contract.  A  mere  allegation  that 
the  inhabitants  were  dissatisfied,  would  be  insufficient  cause  of  dismissal 
at  any  time.  They  should  be  able  to  show  who  are  dissatisfied  and  for 
what  cause. 

The  teacher  did  not  undertake,  expressly,  or  by  implication,  to  satisfy 
every  person  in  the  district,  and  it  would  have  been  absurd  to  require 
or  expect  it.  The  trustees  were  ordered  to  reinstate  Mr.  Grooty  in  his 
school,  and  at  the  end  of  five  months  from  November  19,  to  pay  him 
his  wages  at  $11  per  month,  without  any  deduction  for  the  time  between 
his  dismissal,  and  his  reinstatement. 

Per  Spencer,  March  6,  1811. 

Children  of  non-residents  are  not  entitled  to  attend  a  district  school 
without  permission  of  the  trustees,  and  upon  such  terms  as  may  be 
agreed  upon.     They  cannot  be  permitted  to  share  in  the  public  money, 
appropriated  to  the  district,  under  any  circumstances. 
Per  Spencer,  March  26,  1841. 

A  conditional  consent  to  the  alteration  of  a  district  cannot  be  given. 
The  trustees  must  either  give  or  withhold  their  consent.  They  can 
annex  no  conditions. 

Per  Spencer,  April  12,  1841. 

If  the  annual  meeting  be  fairly  and  legally  called,  if  there  be  nothing 
in  the  case  to  show  a  design  to  take  any  undue  advantage  of  the  majority, 
if  there  be  no  surprise  or  fraud  of  any  kind,  and  the  proceedings  be  in 
due  and  usual  form,  and  those  in  attendance  wait  a  reasonable  time,  any 
number  of  persons  is  competent  to  transact  business.  Persons  who 
neglect  to  attend  until  an  hour  has  elapsed  after  the  time  of  meeting, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  11 

specified  in  the  notice,  and  the  meeting  has  adjourned,  have  no  right  to 
call  for  a  reorganization,  and  much  less  right  to  organize  a  new  meeting. 

Per  Spencer,  May  5,  1841. 

When  the  district  has  given  no  direction,  and  the  trustees  have 
already  appropriated  the  public  money  to  a  particular  term  of  school, 
the  district  has  no  further  control  over  the  disposition  of  it.  In  the 
absence  of  any  specific  directions  by  the  district  the  trustees  can  apply 
the  money  as  they  may  deem  best  for  the  interests  of  the  schools. 

Per  Spencer,  June  15,  1811. 

When  a  site  has  been  designated  and  a  tax  raised  for  building  a 
school-house,  a  building  committee  may  be  appointed  by  the  meeting. 
But  contracts  are  to  be  made  and  money  to  be  paid  out  by  the  trustees, 
and  the  building  committee  must  be  regarded  as  the  agents  of  the 
trustees,  to  carry  out  the  direction  of  the  meeting.  As  agents  of  the 
trustees,  the  latter  will  be  responsible  for  the  fulfillment  of  their  con- 
tracts up  to  the  amount  of  the  tax. 

Per  Spencer,  June  19,  1811. 

The  acts  of  trustees,  de facto,  holding  office  under  color  of  an  election,  subsequently 
declared  void  and  set  aside,  are  valid,  and  binding  upon  their  successors. 

Samuel  S.  Lord  and  John  S.  Panlow,  were  elected  trustees  of  District 
No.  6,  Lincklaen,  at  a  meeting  which  was,  on  appeal,  decided  to  be  ille- 
gal, and  the  proceedings  thereat  void. 

Before  the  decision,  however,  the  trustees  had  contracted  to  build  a 
school-house,  in  accordance  with  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  at 
which  they  were  elected,  and  had  hired  a  teacher  for  the  winter  school, 
and  agreed  to  pay  him  $24  of  the  public  money,  and  had  levied  and 
partly  collected  a  tax  of  $50,  voted  by  said  meeting  toward  building  the 
school-house. 

Their  successors  refused  to  fulfill  their  contracts,  and  they  appealed. 

Held,  that  until  the  decision  declaring  void  the  proceedings  of  the 
meeting  that  elected  them,  they  were  to  all  intents  and  purposes  the 
legal  officers  of  the  district,  so  far  as  the  public  and  third  persons  were 
concerned.  They  acted  in  their  official  and  not  in  their  individual 
capacity,  for  the  district  and  not  for  themselves.  The  collection  of  the 
tax  assessed  by  them  could  not  be  resisted ;  all  their  contracts  made 
within  their  official  jurisdiction  were  legal  and  binding.  They  were 
competent  to  transact  all  the  business  of  the  district.  Their  successors, 
under  the  decision,  succeeded  not  merely  to  all  their  rights,  but  also  to 
all  their  legal  liabilities,  and  were  bound  to  execute  all  their  contracts 
entered  into  while  acting  under  color  of  a  legal  election. 
Per  Spencer,  June  25,  1841. 


12  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

If  commissioners  withhold  assent  to  raise  a  tax  larger  than  $400,  their  refusal  is 
subject  to  review  upon  appeal. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  village  of  Cuba  had  been  united  in  one  district 
by  the  consolidation  of  two  others.  They  had  been  offered  a  site  for  a 
school-house,  in  a  central  and  commodious  location,  upon  the  sole  con- 
sideration that  they  should  erect  upon  it  a  house  worth  $800.  They 
unanimously  voted  to  accept  the  site  and  raise  the  tax,  and  applied  to 
the  school  commissioners  for  consent  to  levy  that  sum.  Consent  was 
refused  on  the  ground  that  the  consolidation  of  the  districts  would  bo 
the  means  of  breaking  up  the  select  school  hitherto  maintained  in  the 
district,  and  further  that  the  inhabitants  were  unable  to  bear  the  in- 
creased burdens  of  such  an  organization. 

The  commissioners  have  a  discretionary  power  to  grant,  or  refuse 
their  consent.  But  in  this  case  it  was  not  wisely  exercised.  They 
were  bound  to  have  a  stronger  interest  in  the  improvement  of  the  com- 
mon schools,  than  in  the  welfare  of  a  private  select  school.  The  inha- 
bitants, who  ought  to  understand  their  own  interests,  and  know  their 
pecuniary  resources,  had  unanimously  resolved  to  raise  the  tax,  and 
shoulder  the  burden  of  the  new  organization.  The  commissioners 
ought  not  to  assume  that  they  had  overestimated  their  ability. 

The  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  a  district,  may  consist  of  persons 
destitute  themselves  of  pecuniary  resources,  and  desirous  to  avail  them- 
selves of  the  property  of  the  minority  to  build  an  unnecessarily  costly 
school-house  for  the  district.  The  check,  which  the  commissioners 
possess,  to  abuses  like  this,  is  wise  and  salutary,  and  that  check  was 
undoubtedly  conferred,  with  a  view  to  the  possible  happening  of  cases  of 
this  description. 

The  discretion  exercised  in  this  case,  like  that  of  granting  or  refusing 
a  certificate  to  a  teacher,  is  the  subject  of  appeal.  The  authority  of 
the  superintendent  upon  appeal,  extends  to  all  matters  arising  under 
the  school  laws.  His  decisions  have  been  treated  as  conclusive  by  the 
courts,  and  acquiesced  in  by  the  legislature  and  the  people. 

The  commissioners  were  ordered  to  give  their  consent  to  the  tax  of 
6800. 

Per  Spencer,  July  19,  1841. 

Subsequently  the  same  case  came  up  a  second  time,  on  the  refusal  of 
the  commissioners  to  obey  the  order  of  the  superintendent.  The  pre- 
vious decision  was  sustained  and  enforced  in  an  elaborate  opinion,  from 
which  we  take  the  portions  treating  of  discretionary  powers,  and  the 
appellant  jurisdiction  of  the  school  department. 

"  The  discretion  of  public  officers  is  a  legal  one,  to  be  governed  by 
sound  principles,  and  not  by  the  capricious  whim  of  the  individual,  and 
the  instances  are  frequent,  where  courts  of  law  regulate  and  direct  the 
exercise  of  discretionary  power  by  officers,  where  third  persons  have  an 
interest  in  such  exercise.  The  only  discretion  which  courts  do  not 
undertake  to  control,  is  that  which,  according  to  Justice  Sutherland, 
5  Wendell,  125,  'is  not  and  cannot  be  governed  by  any  fixed  principles, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  13 

and  rules.'  Few  matters  would  seem  more  susceptible  of  the  application 
of  fixed  rules,  than  the  size  of  a  school-house,  necessary  to  accommodate 
properly  a  given  number  of  children,  the  amount  of  money  required  for 
its  construction,  and  the  ability  of  a  district  to  raise  a  given  sum.  So 
that  even  upon  any  of  the  ordinary  processes  of  law,  this  would  be  a 
case  where  the  discretionary  power  of  commissioners  could  be  regulated 
and  controlled.  But  when  we  consider  that  a  tribunal  has  been  erected 
for  the  express  purpose  of  supervising  all  the  officers  engaged  in  the 
administration  of  the  common  school  system  ;  that  there  is  scarcely  an 
act  to  be  performed  by  them,  which  does  not  involve  more  or  less  dis- 
cretion, and  that  an  appeal  is  given  from  all  these  acts  in  the  most  com- 
prehensive terms ;  we  see  at  once  that  the  rules  which  would  govern 
legal  proceedings  on  common  law  process,  are  not  the  proper  guides, 
and  that  we  must  recur  to  broader  and  more  enlarged  principles. 

"  The  word  appeal  comes  from  the  civil  law,  and  its  nature  and 
office  is  to  substitute  the  appellate  tribunal  for  that  whose  acts  are 
examined ;  and  if  the  case  be  one  involving  discretion,  then  the  appeal 
invokes  that  very  discretion  in  the  superior,  in  the  same  manner  and  to 
the  same  extent  that  it  was  possessed  by  the  inferior.  '  The  cause  is  in 
the  appellate  court'  say  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States,  in 
1  Wheaton  112  '  as  if  it  were  in  the  inferior  court." 

"The  great  majority  of  cases  decided  in  this  department  are  those  in- 
volving more  or  less  discretionaiy  power. 

"  The  statute  itself  enumerates  many  cases  that  are  entirely  of  a  dis- 
cretionary character.  The  decisions  of  district  school  meetings  upon 
any  subject  upon  which  they  are  competent  to  act,  such  as  the  designa- 
tion of  the  site  of  a  school-house,  the  amount  of  money  to  be  raised 
by  tax,  and  the  omission  to  levy  taxes,  involve  large  discretion,  but  are 
nevertheless  subject  to  appeal  by  the  express  words  of  the  law.  The 
formation  and  alteration  of  school  districts,  must  be  guided  by  a  sound 
judgment  upon  various  facts  and  circumstances,  such  as  the  number  of 
children,  the  amount  of  taxable  property,  the  extent  of  territory,  and 
the  convenience  of  the  inhabitants.  Some  fixed  rules  may  be  applied, 
but  in  many  cases,  the  decision  must  depend  on  general  ideas  of  the 
propriety  and  fitness  of  things. 

"  Among  cases  not  enumerated,  and  which  fall  within  the  fourth  sub- 
division of  the  section  conferring  the  right  of  appeal,  the  following  are 
of  daily  occurrence,  viz :  The  granting,  or  refusing  a  license  to  a  teacher ; 
the  valuations  of  school-houses,  or  other  property  on  the  formation  of 
new  districts ;  the  refusal  of  trustees  to  call  special  meetings,  to  employ 
teachers,  or  to  keep  the  schools  open,  and  the  employment  and  dismissal 
of  teachers ;  the  government  of  the  school,  the  admittance,  and  expul- 
sion of  scholars,  <fec.  Indeed  it  would  be  difficult  to  specify  a  single  act 
which  auy  officer  concerned  in  the  administration  of  the  system  may 
perform,  that  has  not  been  the  subject  of  appeal. 

"  The  present  case  presents  less  opportunity  for  the  exercise  of  discre- 
tion than  many  of  those  above  enumerated.  The  expense  of  a  school- 
house  must  depend  upon  its  size  and  materials.     Its  size,  the  number 


14  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

of  rooms,  and  the  proper  conveniences,  will  depend  upon  the  number  of 
children  in  the  district  of  the  proper  age  to  occupy  it.  The  only  other 
element  for  consideration,  is  the  ability  of  the  district,  a  fact  easily 
ascertained  from  the  assessment  roll.  There  is,  therefore,  nothing  in 
the  nature  of  the  decision  to  be  made,  to  prevent  its  being  reviewed  and 
examined  upon  fixed  and  settled  principles. 

"  So  far  as  our  laws  afford  any  analogy  in  cases  of  appeal,  there  does 
not  appear  to  be  any  distinction  between  discretionary  and  other  cases. 
Thus  appeals  to  county  judges  from  commissioners  of  highways,  respect- 
ing the  opening,  altering  and  discontinuing  of  highways,  necessarily 
involve  that  discretion  which  depends  on  private  judgment. 

"  Upon  the  most  mature  deliberation  then,  I  cannot  doubt  that  the 
granting  or  refusing  of  a  certificate,  that  a  larger  sum  than  $400  should 
be  raised  for  building  a  school-house,  is  necessarily  the  subject  of  an 
appeal  to  the  superintendent.  And  as  in  all  cases  of  appeal,  the  statute 
declares  his  opinion  to  be  'final,'  there  must  be  some  mode  of  giving 
it  effect.  In  the  present  case,  the  commissioners  decline  obedience  to 
the  order,  directing  them  to  grant  the  required  certificate.  From  that 
refusal,  an  appeal  has  been  made,  and  the  commissioners  have  answered. 
The  whole  system  must  be  very  defective,  if  there  be  no  power  to  have  an 
act  performed,  which  the  competent  tribunal  has  determined  to  be  legal 
and  proper.  Perhaps  the  appellants  may  enforce  the  order  of  the 
superintendent,  by  an  application  to  the  supreme  court  for  a  mandamus. 

"  But  if  there  be  a  more  direct,  simple  and  less  expensive  remedy,  I 
am  bound  to  pursue  the  policy  of  the  statute,  in  erecting  this  tribunal, 
by  furnishing  it.  I  think  there  is.  It  is  a  universal  principle,  recognized 
in  England  and  in  this  country,  that  the  court  to  which  a  writ  of  error, 
or  an  appeal  is  brought,  is  bound  to  render  the  judgment  which  the 
inferior  tribunal  should  have  rendered.  Upon  this  principle  this 
department  may  authorize  the  inhabitants  of  the  district,  at  a  lawful 
meeting,  to  raise  the  additional  sum  necessary  for  building  a  new 
school-house,  that  being  the  judgment  or  decision,  which,  in  the  opinion 
of  the  superintendent,  the  commissioners  should  have  made.  I  find  an 
order  of  my  immediate  predecessor,  founded  on  this  principle,  and 
analagous  to  the  one  proposed  to  be  made  on  this  appeal,  in  the  case  of 
the  trustees  of  school  District  No.  30,  in  Johnstown,  in  Common 
School  Decisions,  page  161.  The  inhabitants  of  the  district  had 
authorized  the  trustees  to  make  such  repairs  to  the  school-house  as  they 
should  think  necessary  and  proper,  and  in  pursuance  of  such  authority 
they  had  contracted  with  a  workman  to  make  the  repairs,  and  agreed 
to  pay  him  $30.  But  the  district  refused  to  vote  more  than  $25.  On 
appeal,  the  superintendent,  Mr.  Dix  held  that  the  district  was  bound  to 
indemnify  the  trustees ;  and  he  ordered  that  the  trustees  should  make 
out  a  tax  list  for  the  whole  amount,  and  collect  it." 

In  pursuance  of  this  opinion  the  district  was  authorized  to  raise  a 
tax  of  $400,  over  and  above  the  $400  which  the  district  could  other- 
wise raise,  and  the  trustees  were  empowered  to  levy  and  collect  it. 
Per  Spencer,  September  18,  1841, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  15 

Where  a  teacher  is  improperly  dismissed,  he  is  entitled  to  full  wages  for  the  period 
named  in  the  contract. 

A.  B.  Bralcy  Lad  been  employed  to  teach  school  in  District  No.  1,  in 
the  town  of  Carroll,  for  four  months,  at  $13  per  month.  After  he  had 
taught  two  and  a  half  months,  some  of  the  inhabitants  withdrew  their 
children  for  fear  the  rate  bill  would  be  too  large.  For  various  causes, 
others  followed  their  example,  until  the  school  dwindled  down  to  two  or 
three  scholars,  when  the  trustees  ordered  him  to  quit,  about  three 
weeks  before  the  expiration  of  his  term,  upon  the  understanding  that  he 
should  complete  it  if  called  upon. 

A  special  meeting,  subsequently  held,  passed  a  vote  to  pay  the  teacher 
for  the  time  actually  employed,  and  no  longer.  The  trustees  refused  to 
pay  him  for  the  full  time  and  he  appealed.  He  had  performed,  or  been 
at  all  times  ready  to  perform  the  contract  on  his  part,  he  was  duly 
qualified,  his  school  had  been  visited  by  the  town  and  county  authorities 
and  approved  by  them.  The  vote  of  the  district  could  not  affect  the 
rights  of  the  parties.  The  trustees  were  bound  to  fulfill  the  contract, 
and  to  make  out  a  rate  bill. 

Ter  Young,  March  19,  1842. 

The  inhabitants  legally  assembled  at  any  district  meeting  may  vote  to  raise  a  tax 

for  any  purpose  authorized  by  law. 
In  case  of  vacancy  two  or  even  one,  trustee  may  do  any  official  act. 
The  expense  of  investigating  a  title  is  a  part  of  the  expense  of  a  site,  and  may  bo 

legally  included  in  a  tax. 

At  a  meeting  held  in  District  No.  3,  Williamsburgh,  on  the  third  day 
of  December,  1852,  a  tax  of  $5985.56,  was  voted,  and  among  the  items 
making  up  the  aggregate,  were  $50  for  investigating  the  title  to  the  site, 
$20  for  hiring  a  room,  and  $10  for  furnishing  fuel  for  a  colored  school 
and  $601.81  for  exemptions  of  indigent  children  and  $3.75  for  a  tax 
book. 

It  was  on  appeal,  objected  that  these  items  were  illegal,  and  impro- 
perly included  in  the  tax.  It  was,  also,  in  the  first  instance,  objected 
that  the  meeting  was  called  by  but  two  trustees,  there  being  a  vacancy, 
and  but  two  in  office  at  the  time. 

On  these  points  the  superintendent  says  : 

When  a  vacancy  exists  in  the  office  of  trustee,  the  remaining  trustees 
are  expressly  authorized  by  law  to  call  a  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  to 
fill  such  vacancy,  and  the  inhabitants  when  legally  assembled  at  any 
annual,  or  special  meeting  have  power  to  raise  a  tax  for  the  various  pur- 
poses recognized  by  law.  There  is  no  doubt  that  two,  or  even  one, 
trustee  may  legally  do  any  official  act  during  the  actual  existence  of  a 
vacancy  in  the  office  of  their,  or  his  colleagues. 

It  has  been  held  that  the  expense  of  recording  of  a  deed,  may  be 
included  in  a  tax  for  purchasing  a  site,  inasmuch  as  it  is  necessary  to 
perfect  the  title.  On  the  same  principle,  the  expense  of  investigating 
the  title,  is  a  necessary  part  of  the  expense  of  procuring  a  site. 


16  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

The  items  for  exemptions,  and  for  the  rent  of  room  and  cost  of  fuel 
for  the  colored  school,  are  expressly  authorized  by  law.  The  trustees 
have  power  to  exempt  indigent  persons  from  the  payment  of  rate  bills, 
and  their  exercise  of  the  power  is  conclusive,  unless  set  aside  on  appeal. 

The  purchase  of  tax  book  is  an  item  not  often  necessary,  but  in  a 
district  comprising  the  most  populous  portion  of  a  large  village,  divided 
into  5000  lots  and  upwards,  with  a  valuation  of  82,000,000,  the 
expense  of  making  up  a  tax  list  is  no  inconsiderable  item. 

Per  Young,  April  25,  1842. 

Districts  have  not  power  at  an  adjourned  meeting,  by  reconsidering  and  rescind- 
ing its  former  proceedings,  to  displace  officers  elected  at  the  annual  meeting. 

District  No.  19,  in  the  town  of  Watervleit,  held  its  annual  meeting 
on  the  29th  of  March,  1842,  and  elected  its  district  officers.  The 
meeting  then  adjourned  to  April  6,  and  a  resolution  to  reconsider  and 
rescind  the  proceedings  of  the  annual  meeting  was  adopted,  by  which 
it  was  attempted  to  displace  one  trustee  and  the  district  clerk,  and  elect 
others  in  their  places. 

The  department  has  uniformly  held  that  the  officers  chosen  at  the 
annual  meeting  are  the  legal  officers  of  the  district,  until  by  resignation, 
death,  removal  from  the  district,  refusal  to  serve,  or  expiration  of  term, 
a  vacancy  occurs,  proper  to  be  filled  by  election  or  appointment. 
"When  an  election  has  been  held  in  due  form,  the  elective  power  is 
exhausted.  And  when  a  man  entitled  to  hold  office  has  been  elected 
and  consented  to  serve,  there  is  no  power  to  take  it  from  him,  or  debar 
him  from  assuming  its  duties. 

Per  Young,  May  2,  1842. 

Children  of  temporary  residents  are  to  be  enumerated  in  the  annual  reports  of 
trustees. 

The  language  of  the  law  is  that  "all  children  actually  residing  in  the 
district  on  the  first  day  of  January,  although  such  residence  may  be 
temporary,  shall  be  included  in  the  reports  of  the  trustees."  And 
again.  "All  children  included  in  the  reports  of  the  trustees  of  any 
school  district  shall  be  entitled  to  attend  the  schools  of  such  district." 

These  provisions  were  evidently  intended  especially  to  meet  the  case 
of  the  children  of  laborers  on  our  public  works,  and  others  temporarily 
residing  in  school  districts. 

Per  Young,  May  27,  1842. 

An  election  set  aside,  when  four  voters  elected  at  the  very  hour  of  meeting,  and  a 
majority  came  in  half  an  hour. 

At  the  annual  meeting  held  in  District  No.  1,  in  the  town  of  McDo- 
nough,  September  12,  1841,  four  persons  having  met  precisely  at  the 
hour  to  which  the  meeting  stood  adjourned,  elected  the  district  officers, 
without  waiting  for  the  residue  of  the  inhabitants,  a  large  majority  of 
whom  appeared  within  half  an  hour.     This  was  a  manifest  case  of  sur- 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  17 

prise.     An  undue  and  unnecessary  advantage  was  taken  of  the  majority 
of  the  inhabitants,  and  officers,  not  of  their  choice,  imposed  upon  them. 

Per  Young,  October  3,  1842. 

An  alien,  who  is  a  legal  voter,  may  hold  office  in  a  school  district. 

Mr.  George  Oliver,  an  alien,  who  was  entitled  to  hold  real  estate, 
having  taken  the  necessary  legal  steps  for  that  purpose,  was  elected 
trustee  of  school  District  No.  1,  Bombay,  on  the  4th  day  of  October,  1842. 

The  superintendent  said  he  was  unable  to  see  any  good  cause  why 
any  inhabitant  of  a  school  district,  legally  authorized  to  vote  therein, 
should  not  be  admitted  to  a  free  participation  in  the  offices  of  the 
district,  or  rather  why  he  should  claim  an  exemption  from  the  burdens 
which  the  law  devolves  upon  the  other  inhabitants  of  the  district,  in 
supervising  its  affairs  from  year  to  year.  There  is  in  reality  very  little 
analogy  in  cases  of  this  description,  to  those  against  which  our  laws  in 
reference  to  aliens  were  intended  to  provide.  I  am  therefore  disposed 
to  hold  any  and  every  legal  voter  in  a  school  district  eligible  as  an 
officer  therein. 

Per  Young,  November  18,  1842. 

When  different  parcels  of  property,  of  different  quality  and  value, 
lying  in  two  districts,  are  so  coupled  together  in  the  town  assessment 
roll,  in  one  aggregate  valuation,  that  their  separate  value  is  not  appa- 
rent, and  cannot  be  fixed,  without  an  exercise  of  judgment  on  the  part 
of  the  trustees,  a  new  valuation  should  be  made,  and  notice  given. 
Per  Young,  Nov.  23,  1842. 

The  wages  of  a  teacher  employed  for  the  winter  term,  may  be  paid 
from  the  school  money  to  be  received  the  next  spring. 

Per  Young,  November  28,  1842. 

In  the  absence  of  any  specific  directions  by  the  district,  the  trustees 
may  apply  the  public  money  to  the  summer  and  winter  terms  of  a  school 
in  such  proportions  as  they  may  deem  just. 

Per  Young,  January  10,  1843. 

A  district  meeting  may  prescribe  the  terms  of  a  contract  for  building  a  school- 
house. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  13,  in  the  town  of  Bethany,  refused  to 
pay  Daniel  R.  Prindle  the  sum  of  872.50  upon  his  contract  for  building 
a  school-house :  1st.  On  the  ground  that  they  had  not  executed  the 
contract;  and  2d.  That  the  school-house  was  useless  to  the  district 
because  the  right  of  way  to  it,  over  intervening  lands,  coidd  not  be 
obtained. 

The  district  meeting,  which  voted  the  tax  for  building  the  school- 
house,  had  prescribed  the  terms  of  the  contract,  and  the  same  was 
drawn  up  at  the  time  by  one  of  the  trustees,  and  signed  by  the  con- 
tractor.    The  trustees  were  directed  to  superintend  the  erection  of  the 

[Digest.]  3 


18  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

house  according  to  its  terms,  and  to  fulfill  it  on  the  part  of  the  district. 
The  builder  fulfilled  his  part,  and  the  trustees  recognize*  the  contract 
by  superintending  and  directing  the  work. 

The  trustees,  as  the  agents  and  servants  o'"  the  distrct,  are  the  proper 
and  indeed  only  persons  to  make  and  execute  bargains  and  contracts  on 
the  part  of  the  district.  But  the  meeting  was  competent  to  specify  the 
terms  of  a  contract,  and  in  this  ease  did  so,  and  one  of  the  trustees 
drew  it,  according  to  the  terms  prescribed.  The  contractor  executed  it 
on  his  part,  and  performed  it.  The  trustees,  by  recognizing  it  aud  direct- 
ing the  work,  were  in  fact  parties  to  it,  although  they  did  not  sign  it. 

The  remaining  objection  is  entirely  groundless.  The  contractor  for 
building  the  school-house,  cannot  be  in  any  way  responsible  for  a  failure 
of  title  to  the  site,  or  a  right  of  way  to  it.  The  question  of  title  and 
right  of  way  is  between  the  district  and  the  grantors,  or  owners  of  the  land. 

Having  collected  the  tax  of  $72.50,  levied  to  pay  for  the  house,  they 
are  legally  and  equitably  bound  to  pay  over  the  proceeds  to  the  con- 
tractor. 

Per  Young,  February  3,  1843. 

The  law  has  not  specified  any  time,  within  which  a  warrant  for  tne  collection  of 
a  tax  shall  be  delivered  to  the  collector. 

Where  a  tax  was  voted  in  June,  18-11,  and  the  tax  list  was  made  out, 
within  the  time  and  in  the  mode  required  by  law,  but  the  warrant  for 
collection  was  not  issued  till  January  31st,  the  delay  was  held  not  to 
affect  its  legality,  or  validity. 

'  Per  Young.  March  21,  1813. 

A  teacher,  for  an  act  of  disobedience,  ordered  a  boy,  fifteen  years  of 
age,  to  hold  out  a  book,  of  the  ordinary  size  used  in  schools,  at  arm's 
length,  level  with  his  shoulder.  The  boy,  after  holding  it  in  that  posi- 
tion from  five  to  eight,  or  ten  minutes,  let  it  fall  and  said  he  could  not 
hold  it  any  longer.  On  being  ordered  to  hold  it  out  again,  he  peremp- 
torily refused.  The  teacher,  then,  with  a  curled  maple  rule,  over 
twenty  inches  loner,  one  and  three-quarters  wide,  and  half  an  inch  thick, 
struck  him  from  fifteen  to  twenty  blows  on  his  back  and  thighs,  and  in 
so  severe  a  manner  as  to  disable  him  from  leaving  school  without  assis- 
tance. A  physician  was  called  and  found  his  back  and  limbs  badly 
bruised  and  swollen.  The  teacher  on  the  succeeding  day,  sent  to  him  a 
physician,  who  pronounced  him  "  very  badly  bruised."  It  was  ten  or 
twelve  davs  before  he  so  far  recovered  as  to  be  able  to  attend  school. 

The  superintendent  expresses  his  unqualified  disapprobation  of  a 
punishment,  so  severe  and  unreasonable.  If  the  disobedience  of  the  boy 
had  been  the  result  of  sheer  obstinacy  and  willfullness,  it  could  not  justify 
the  infliction  of  fifteen  or  twenty  blows  with  such  a  bludgeon,  upon  the 
back  and  limbs  of  the  boy,  disabling  him  for  a  fortnight.  Such  a 
measure  of  punishment  for  such  an  offence,  would  be  sufficient  ground 
for  annulling  his  certificate. 

Per  YouDg,  March  29,  1843. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  19 

When  a  board  of  town  officers  is  called  together,  for  the  purpose  of 
altering  a  joint  district,  a  majority  of  the  officers  from  each  town  must 
vote  in  the  affirmative  to  give  validity  to  an  order  for  alteration. 

Per  Young",  March  28,  1843. 

The  inhabitants  of  a  school  district  have  no  power  to  direct  the  trustees  to  levy 
a  tax,  to  pay  the  expenses  of  an  arbitration  in  settling  difficulties  in  a  district. 

The  decision  of  the  county  superintendent  declaring  that  the  inha- 
bitants of  District  No.  13,  in  voting  a  tax  to  defray  or  reimburse 
the  expenses  of  an  arbitration,  and  other  liabilities  which  had  accrued 
in  settling  the  difficulties  to  which  the  district  had  been  exposed  for  the 
past  nine  months,  had  transcended  the  powers  conferred  on  them  by  law, 
is  strictly  in  accordance  with  the  previous  adjudications  of  this  depart- 
ment, and  with  the  well  settled  principles  by  which  it  has  been  uniformly 
governed  in  the  disposition  of  cases  of  this  nature,  and  must  accordingly 
be  affirmed.  The  law  has  distinctly  defined  the  purposes  for  which  a 
school  district  tax  may  be  voted  ;  and  the  inhabitants  can  in  no  case  go 
beyond  them.  That  the  expenses  for  which  the  tax  in  this  case  was 
imposed,  were  incurred  by  the  trustees,  under  the  sanction  and  directions 
of  a  district  meeting,  cannot  affect  the  principle ;  the  district  had  no 
legal  authority  to  pass  such  a  vote,  and  it  was  in  no  sense  obligatory 
either  upon  the  inhabitants  or  trustees.  The  only  mode  by  which  the 
trustees  can  be  indemnified  for  the  expenditures  incurred  by  them,  is  by 
voluntary  contribution.  They  cannot  legally  enforce  the  collection  of 
a  district  tax  for  this  purpose. 

Per  Young,  September  12,  1843. 

The  inhabitants  of  a  school  district  have  power  to  vote  a  tax  to  pay  the  arrears 
of  uncollected  rate  bills. 

The  trustees  and  collector  are  the  agents  of  the  district,  and  the 
district  may  hold  them  to  a  strict  account,  and  may  call  upon  them 
personally  to  respond  for  any  loss  incurred  by  their  official  negligence. 
But  the  inhabitants  have  the  right  to  determine  whether  the  negligence 
is  of  such  a  character  as  under  the  circumstances  is  excusable,  and  con- 
sequently to  vote  a  tax  to  satisfy  the  loss. 

Per  Young,  November  15,  1843. 

A  ballot  for  three  trustees  being  had,  and  but  one  elected,  a  motion  to  reconsider 
was  made,  pending  which  the  meeting  adjourned.  The  vote  to  reconsider 
at  the  adjourned  meeting  sustained,  and  the  election  of  three  trustees 
declared  valid. 

At  the  annual  meeting  held  in  District  No.  4  in  Ballston,  on  the 
2d  day  of  October,  1843,  the  inhabitants  balloted  for  three  trustees. 
On  counting  the  ballots  it  appeared  that  one  trustee  only  had  been 
elected.  A  motion  was  made  to  reconsider  the  whole  proceeding  in 
relation  to  the  election  of  trustees,  pending  which  the  meeting  adjourned 
for  one  week.     At  the  adjourned  meeting  the  motion  for  reconsideration 


20  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

was  put  and  prevailed  and  three  persons  were  then  chosen  trustees  by 
ballot. 

From  this  proceeding  the  appellant  took  an  appeal  to  the  county 
superintendent,  claiming  to  have  been  duly  elected  at  the  first  meeting 
and  denying  the  legal  right  of  the  inhabitants  at  the  adjourned  meet- 
ing to  reconsider  the  said  vote. 

The  county  superintendent  sustained  the  appeal. 

It  is  obvious  that  the  election  of  trustees  was  not  completed  at  the 
first  meeting.  One  trustee  only  (the  appellant)  was  chosen ;  at  the 
adjourned  meeting  the  inhabitants  took  up  the  business  of  the  annual 
meeting  where  they  had  left  it,  and  agreed  to  the  motion  to  reconsider. 
After  such  reconsideration  three  other  persons  were  duly  elected.  The 
adjourned  meeting  was  a  continuance  of  the  annual  meeting,  and  it  was 
undoubtedly  legally  competent  for  the  inhabitants  at  either  meeting  to 
reconsider  or  rescind  the  whole  or  any  part  of  their  proceedings.  Had 
it  been  otherwise  the  district  must  have  been  left  with  one  trustee  only. 

The  decision  of  the  county  superintendent  must  be  reversed. 
Per  Young,  November  15,  1843. 

If  a  portion  of  the  inhabitants  in  a  school  district  meeting  voluntarily  withdraw 
therefrom,  those  remaining  may  organize  and  proceed  to  do  the  business  for 
which  the  meeting  was  called. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  the  last  annual  meeting, 
held  in  District  No.  13,  Walworth  and  Ontario.  The  meeting  as  des- 
cribed by  each  of  the  parties,  was  a  strong  one,  and  many  attempts 
were  made  to  elect  district  officers,  every  candidate  nominated  being 
voted  down.  At  length  a  portion  of  the  inhabitants  withdrew  from 
the  meeting,  among  whom  were  the  moderator  and  old  officers  of  the 
district.  The  rest  of  the  inhabitants  immediately  chose  a  new  mode- 
rator and  proceeded  to  eleet  district  officers  for  the  ensuing  year  and  to 
transact  the  business  usual  at  an  annual  meeting. 

As  there  was  no  adjournment,  but  a  voluntary  withdrawal  of  the 
appellants,  those  who  remained  had  a  legal  right  to  organize  anew  and 
proceed  to  business.  The  proceedings  of  the  meeting  are  therefore 
declared  to  be  regular  and  the  appeal  dismissed. 

Per  Morgan,  March,  1848. 

An  annual  meeting  will  be  held  to  be  legal,  although  the  proper  notices  are  not 
given,  if  the  inhabitants  assemble  at  the  time  and  place  to  which  it  was 
adjourned  the  previous  year. 

Per  Morgan,  November,  1848. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees,  at  the  request  of  a  respectable  number  of  the  legal 
voters  of  a  district,  to  call  a  special  meeting,  although  the  inhabitants  may 
have  acted  upon  the  same  subject  in  school  meeting. 

A  school  meeting  in  District  No.  2,  in  Litchfield,  directed  about  $ 9 
of  the  library  money  to  be  expended  in  the  purchase  of  globes,  and  also 
voted  a  tax  of  $270,  for  the  purpose  of  building  a  new  school-house. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  21 

The  trustees  refused  to  call  a  special  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  taking 
a  new  vote  of  the  district  upon  the  question  of  huilding  a  school-house, 
though  requested  to  call  such  meeting  l>y  fourteen  legal  voters  of  the 
district.  The  trustees  were  wrong  in  their  refusal  to  call  a  district 
meeting,  at  the  request  of  so  large  a  number  of  the  inhabitants.  It  is 
proper  that  the  legal  voters  should  have  an  opportunity,  if  they  desire 
it,  to  vote  again  upon  the  question.  It  is  therefore  ordered  that  the 
trustees  call  a  meeting,  in  accordance  with  the  request  of  the  appellants. 

Per  Morgan,  February,  1848 

An  annual  meeting  cannot  be  held  at  any  particular  time,  unless  it  was  adjourned 
to  some  particular  day,  or  tbe  trustees  have  given  special  notice  for  it. 

The  facts  in  the  case  are  as  follows :  For  several  years  the  annual 
meetings  of  the  district  had  been  held  on  the  2d  Tuesday  of  Octo- 
ber, according  to  the  adjournment  of  each  preceding  annual  meeting, 
except  that  the  annual  meeting  of  1847  was  adjourned  without  date, 
and  the  meeting  held  on  the  2d  day  of  October,  1848,  was  supposed 
to  be  authorized  from  the  custom  of  the  district,  although  the  annual 
meeting  of  the  preceding  year  did  not  adjourn  to  that  date. 

The  meeting  of  the  2d  Tuesday  of  October,  1848,  was  organized 
without  the  notices  being  given  by  the  district  clerk  as  required  by  law 
and  without  the  authority  of  the  trustees.  Under  these  circumstances 
the  trustees  called  a  special  meeting  to  be  held  the  24th  day  of  No- 
vember, 1848.  The  decision  of  this  appeal  depends  upon  the  legality 
of  the  meeting  and  not  upon  the  regularity  of  the  proceedings,  for  if  the 
decision  depended  upon  the  regularity  of  the  proceedings,  this  depart- 
ment would  regard  them  as  valid,  unless  duly  appealed  from.  But 
district  meetings  which  are  strictly  illegal  cannot  be  made  legal  by  the 
lapse  of  time. 

It  is  provided  by  §65  of  the  School  Laws  that  "at  each  annual 
meeting,  the  time  and  place  of  holding  the  next  annual  meeting  shall 
be  fixed,"  and  in  case  the  district  omit  to  designate  the  day  for  holding- 
its  annual  meeting,  the  trustees  can  appoint  the  time.  This  does  not 
give  the  district  authority  to  establish  any  date  for  holding  the  annual 
meeting  for  a  series  of  years. 

The  meeting  of  the  2d  Tuesday  of  October,  could  not  therefore 
be  regarded  as  the  annual  meeting  of  the  district,  on  the  ground  that 
the  annual  meetings  of  former  years  had  been  held  at  that  date  by  re- 
gular adjournments.  Either  the  time  should  have  been  designated  at  the 
annual  meeting  of  1847,  or  the  trustees  should  have  called  the  meeting 
and  the  proper  notices  should  have  been  given. 

Per  Morgan,  January,  1849. 


22  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

When  the  assessment  roll  of  a  town  is  at  the  county  seat  in  the  custody  of  the 
board  of  supervisors,  and  a  tax  is  voted  in  its  absence,  it  is  a  sufficient  ex- 
cuse for  not  making  out  the  tax  list  within  thirty  days  after  it  is  .voted. 
The  statute  is  merely  directory. 

At  a  district  meeting  in  the  town  of  Wilson,  held  November  28 
1848,  a  tax  of  fifteen  dollars  was  voted  for  the  purpose  of  furnishing 
the  school  with  wood  during  the  winter. 

The  last  assessment  roll  of  the  town  being  at  the  county  seat,  the 
trustees  did  not  make  out  the  tax  list  within  the  time  directed  by  law. 
Thinking  the  tax  had  become  void,  they  gave  the  district  clerk  a  verbal 
notice,  to  cause  a  special  meeting  to  be  held  the  20th  day  of  November, 
for  the  purpose  of  voting  the  tax  again.  The  meeting  was  held  and  the 
tax  voted.  Also  a  tax  was  voted  to  repair  the  school-house,  without 
the  proper  notice  being  given.  Objection  being  made  by  some  of  the 
inhabitants  to  this  meeting  :  1st,  because  the  notice  of  the  trustees  was 
not  written,  and  2d,  because  a  tax  was  voted  to  repair  the  school-house 
without  the  proper  notice  ; 

The  trustees  called  another  meeting,  to  be  beld  the  23d  December, 
for  the  same  purpose.  At  this  meeting  the  motion  to  raise  the  tax  for 
wood  was  negatived. 

From  this  vote  the  trustees  appeal.  According  to  a  vote  _  of  the 
district  at  the  annual  meeting,  the  trustees  assumed  responsibilities  in 
behalf  of  the  district  for  which  they  were  directed  to  raise  a  tax. 
Although  the  tax  list  may  not  have  been  made  out  within  thirty  days 
after  the  tax  was  voted,  no  subsequent  vote  of  the  district  could  change 
their  liability  to  taxation  for  wood.  The  trustees  acted  under  the 
direction  of  the  district,  and  could  not  therefore  be  made  personally 
responsible,  if  they  acted  in  good  faith.  The  statute  relating  to  the 
time  of  making  out  a  tax  list  is  directory  merely,  and  a  failure  to  comply 
with  it,  through  accident  or  for  good  reasons,  does  not  render  a  tax  that 
has  been  voted  illegal.  The  trustees  in  this  case  had  good  reasons  for 
not  completing  the  tax  list  in  thirty  days,  to  wit,  the  absence  of  the 
assessment  roll.  The  trustees  are  hereby  authorized  to  levy  the  tax 
voted  at  the  annual  meeting. 

Per  Morgan,    January,  1849. 

An  arbitration  between  the  trustees  of  a  school  district  and  a  person  having  a 
claim  against  it,  is  proper  and  legal,  and  the  award  binding  on  the  parties. 
Per  Morgan,  February  19,  1848. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  collector  to  obey  the  mandate  of  his  warrant,  and  proceed  to 
collect  the  tax  or  rate  bill.  If  he  neglect  to  do  so,  he  is  liable  to  be  fined. 
The  trustees  cannot  release  the  bail  of  the  collector  from  the  obligations  of 
his  bond. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.   7,   in  Cuba,   delivered  a  rate  bill   and 

warrant  to  the  collector  of  the  district  for  collection,  and  required  of 

•    him  a  bond,  conditioned  for  the  payment  of  money  received  by  him, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  23 

which  was  given.  Having  discovered  an  error  in  the  rate  bill,  the 
trustees  took  it  from  the  collector  to  correct  it,  without  procuring  the 
assent  of  the  state  superintendent.  While  the  rate  bill  was  in  their 
hands,  the  bail  of  the  collector  demanded  a  release  from  his  bond. 

After  waiting  several  days  for  the  collector  to  procure  new  bail,  and 
his  neglecting  to  do  so,  the  trustees  appointed  another  collector.  If  the 
trustees  released  the  bail  of  the  collector  it  was  at  their  own  risk,  as  he 
was  bound  for  the  collection  of  the  rate  bill  and  the  faithful  application 
of  the  money  collected.  He  did  not  cease  to  be  the  collector  of  the 
district  on  the  demand  of  his  bail  to  be  released,  and  if  he  refuse  or 
neglect  to  perform  any  of  the  duties  of  his  office  he  is  finable.  His 
office  not  being  vacant  the  trustees  could  not  appoint  another  to  fill  his 
place,  and  the  acts  of  the  trustees  in  so  doing  are  illegal. 

Per  Morgan,  November,  1848. 

When  costs  have  been  incurred  against  district  officers  in  suits  by  or  against 
them  in  the  discharge  of  their  official  duties,  a  majority  of  the  voters  of  the 
district  may  allow  the  amount,  and  the  trustees  assess  the  same  by  tax,  or 
the  claimants  may  present  their  claim  to  the  board  of  supervisors. 

The  inhabitants  of  District  No.  4,  on  the  4th  September  last,  audited 
the  account  of  the  trustees  for  costs  and  expenses  incurred  in  certain 
suits  commenced  by  and  against  them  and  their  predecessors  in  office, 
and  directed  the  amount  so  audited  and  allowed  to  be  collected  by  a 
tax.  The  superintendent  on  a  careful  examination  of  this  case  is  satis- 
fied that  the  account  was  made  out  and  presented  in  good  faith,  that 
the  items  were  such  as  the  district  were  fully  competent  to  pass  upon,  and 
that  the  tax  directed  to  be  levied  for  their  payment  was  equitable  and 
just. 

Per  Morgan,  October,  1849. 

8  Howard's  Reports,  125. 

It  is  illegal  for  trustees  to  enumerate  children  in  their  districts,  between  the  ages 
of  five  and  sixteen,  unless  they  compose  a  part  of  the  family  of  their  parents 
or  guardians  or  employers,  if  such  parents  or  guardians  or  employers 
reside  at  the  time  in  such  district. 

The  trustees  in  District  No.  5,  in  the  town  of  Davenport,  included  in 
their  annual  report,  dated  December  31,  1848,  sixty-two  children  under 
sixteen  and  over  five  years  of  age  attending  a  private  school  under 
charge  of  S.  D.  Ferguson.  The  children  attending  this  private  school 
had  parents  residing  mostly  in  New-York  and  Philadelphia,  and  the 
parents  of  none  of  them  in  the  district.  Five  of  said  sixty-two  children 
were  orphans.  It  was  not  known  to  the  department  whether  the  said 
orphans  were  supported  by  Mr.  Ferguson,  or  were  boarded  like  the 
rest,  or  were  sent  to  school  by  their  guardians,  but  the  latter  is  supposed 
to  have  been  the  truth. 

The  school  law,  §  118,  of  1847,  directs  the  trustees  to  include 
in  their  report  all  children  over  five  and  under  sixteen  years  of 
age,  who  shall,  at  the  date  of  such  report,  actually  be  in  the  district, 


24  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

composing  a  part  of  the  family  of  their  parents  or  guardians  or 
employers,  if  such  parents  or  guardians  or  employers  reside  at  the  time 
in  such  district.  From  this  law  it  would  seem  to  be  very  clear,  that  not 
one  of  the  sixty-two  children  attending  Mr.  Ferguson's  schoo)  could  be 
lawfully  enumerated  in  the  annual  report  of  the  trustees. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  5,  were  therefore  wrong  in  including  these 
children  in  their  report. 

Per  Morgan,  March,  1849. 

A  teacher's  certificate  of  qualification,  cannot  he  annulled  without  giving  him 
notice  and  a  reasonable  opportunity,  if  he  desire,  to  appear  and  be  heard  in 
defence. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  5,  in  Guilford,  employed  Mr.  Matteson  to 
teach  their  school  for  the  winter  term.  The  school  commenced  Novem- 
ber 1,  1847.  November  26,  1847,  Mr.  Carhart  visited  the  school,  exam- 
ined Mr.  Matteson,  and  gave  him  a  certificate.  December  6,  the  super- 
intendent stopped  at  the  door  of  the  school-house  and  told  the  teacher 
that  complaints  had  reached  his  ears  in  regard  to  his  mode  of  punishing 
scholars,  and  intimated  that  his  certificate  might  be  annulled.  December 
20th,  the  superintendent  served  a  notice  upon  the  teacher,  that  he  should 
annul  his  certificate  unless  certain  complaints  "  arising  from  his  mode  of 
punishment"  were  cleared  up.  December  25th,  the  teacher  wrote  the 
superintendent  requesting  an  investigation  of  the  charges  and  complaints 
against  him.  January  5th,  the  superintendent  annulled  the  certificate  and 
gave  notice  thereof  to  the  trustees,  without  having  given  the  teacher  any 
opportunity  to  reply  to  or  explain  the  charges  made  against  him,  and 
assigning  as  his  reasons  therefor,  the  complaints  mentioned  in  his  previous 
notice,  and  his  own  observations.  The  trustees  all  signed  a  paper  stating 
that  in  their  opinion,  the  charges  against  the  teacher  were  of  a  trivial 
character,  and  wholly  unfounded,  and  that  the  course  of  the  superintendent 
was  "underhanded,  prejudiced  and  ungentlemanly,"  and  "meets  our  un- 
qualified disapprobation." 

The  conduct  of  the  town  superintendent  in  this  case  will  hardly 
admit  of  a  reasonable  explanation.  He  visits  a  school  twice  and  then 
gives  a  teacher  a  legal  certificate.  In  less  than  a  month  he  gives  the 
teacher  notice  of  his  intention  to  annul  his  certificate,  without  having 
in  the  meantime  visited  the  school  or  required  a  reexamination,  and 
upon  complaints  not  stated  in  writing  or  assuming  any  tangible  shape, 
but  so  far  as  appears  at  the  time,  mere  hearsay  reports,  and  neighbor- 
hood gossip.  The  pretence  that  the  superintendent  had  become  satis- 
fied from  "personal  observations"  that  the  teacher  was  unqualified  is 
very  strangely  inconsistent  with  the  fact  that  he  made  no  "  personal 
observations"  after  granting  the  certificate.  The  teacher  requested 
specifications  of  the  charges.  None  were  given.  He  desired  to  be 
heard  in  answer  to  whatever  could  be  alleged  against  him.  No  oppor- 
tunity was  allowed. 

A  certificate  of  qualification  should  not  be  annulled  without  a  statement 
of  the  complaint,  and  an  investigation  of  its  truth,  and  an  opportunity 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  25 

given  to  the  teacher  to  be  present  during  such  investigation.  Such  are 
the  rules  prescribed  by  this  department  in  proceedings  to  annul  a 
teacher's  certificate,  and  they  are  a  part  of  the  law.  The  superintendent 
proceeded  in  this  matter  without  a  proper  and  needful  statement  of  the 
charges  and  specifications,  and  without  giving  the  teacher  an  opportunity 
to  be  heard  in  defence. 

It  is  therefore  decreed  that  the  order  of  the  town  superintendent, 
annulling  Mr.  Matteson's  certificate  be  set  aside. 

Per  Morgan,  February,  1848. 

When  a  town  superintendent  connives  with  a  trustee  to  procure  his  resignation, 
and  conceals  it  from  the  district,  so  that  the  inhabitants  cannot  elect  a 
successor  within  thirty  days  after  the  resignation,  and  the  town  superinten- 
dent then  makes  the  appointment,  the  department  will  set  the  appointment 
aside  and  order  a  new  election. 

Mr.  Johnson,  a  trustee  in  District  No.  4,  Florence,  proffered  his 
resignation  of  office  to  the  superintendent,  which  was  accepted.  This 
was  done  secretly,  and  obviously  with  the  intention  that  the  district 
should  be  unacquainted  with  it  until  after  the  expiration  of  thirty  days, 
when  the  town  superintendent  could  appoint  a  successor.  It  is  stated 
that  the  town  superintendent  gave  one  of  the  trustees  notice  of  the 
resignation,  but  it  is  clearly  shown  and  is  not  denied  by  the  town 
superintendent,  that  this  was  done  with  a  view  of  seeming  to  fulfill, 
rather  than  to  carry  out  the  meaning  of  the  law,  and  allow  the  district 
to  elect  a  successor,  since  this  trustee  was  very  cautious  about  letting 
any  one  know  it. 

The  district  not  being  permitted  to  choose  the  trustee,  the  town 
superintendent  made  the  appointment  the  day  before  the  expiration  of 
the  thirty  days.  This  department  cannot  suffer  a  district  to  be  imposed 
upon  or  deprived  of  any  privileges  by  the  management  of  officers  or 
the  intrigue  of  individuals.  It  is  therefore  ordered  that  the  appointment 
of  trustee  made  by  the  town  superintendent  of  Florence,  to  supply  the 
vacancy  occasioned  by  the  resignation  of  Mr.  Johnson,  as  trustee  of 
District  No.  4,  in  said  town,  be  set  aside,  and  that  the  trustees  of  said 
district  call  a  special  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  to  fill  the  vacancy. 

Per  Morgan,  February,  1489. 

It  is  not  in  the  power  of  a  district  meeting  to  control  the  trustees  in  the  exerciso 
of  their  duty  of  prosecuting  delinquent  predecessors  for  not  rendering  an 
annual  account,  or  for  not  paying  over  a  balance  of  money  remaining  in 
their  hands.  A  resolution  attempting  to  limit  their  power  in  this  respect  is 
void. 

A  special  meeting  held  in  District  No.  18  in  the  town  of  Sodus, 
February  22,  1848, 

Resolved,  That  a  former  resolution  directing  measures  to  be  taken  to 
collect  certain  arrearages  alleged  to  be  due  from  former  trustees  should 
be  rescinded ;   and  further,   that  no   civil  proceedings  should  be  com- 

[Digest.]  4 


26  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

menced  by  the  trustees  of  the  district  for  school  moneys  not  paid  over 
by  former  trustees,  unless  by  a  special  resolution  of  the  district. 

Both  resolutions  mentioned  in  the  appeal  were  adopted,  under  a 
misapprehension  of  the  powers  and  duties  of  the  inhabitants  when 
assembled  in  school  district  meetings. 

Every  trustee  is  bound  by  law  yearly  to  render  an  account  to  the 
district,  of  the  moneys  received  and  paid  out  by  him,  and  to  file  said 
account  with  the  district  clerk,  and  also  upon  going  out  of  office  to  pay 
over  any  balance  of  money  remaining  in  his  hands  to  his  successors  in 
office. 

For  any  neglect  or  refusal  to  render  such  account  or  to  pay  over  such 
balance,  the  delinquent  forfeits  to  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  district  the 
sum  of  $25.00,  to  be  sued  for  and  recovered  either  by  his  successors  in 
office  or  by  the  town  superintendent.  The  town  superintendent  (super- 
visor) may  also  sue  the  trustees  for  unpaid  balances  in  their  hands.  It 
requires  no  vote  of  the  district  to  authorize  such  suit  to  be  brought, 
and  a  vote  directing  such  suits  to  be  brought,  or  not  to  be  brought,  is  a 
nullity. 

Per  Morgan,  March,  1848. 

The  trustees  of  a  school  district  have  no  power  to  correct  a  tax  list  after  a  por- 
tion of  the  tax  has  heeu  collected  without  permission  from  the  department 
of  public  instruction. 

The  town  superintendent  of  Crown  Point,  having,  February  19,  1847, 
regularly  formed  a  new  district  in  said  town,  served  a  notice  upon  Aaron 
T.  Townsend,  a  taxable  inhabitant  of  said  district,  together  with  a  copy 
of  the  order  forming  the  district,  requiring  him  to  notify  each  taxable 
inhabitant  of  a  district  meeting  to  be  held  on  the  first  of  March  follow- 
ing. Accordingly  notice  was  given  to  the  inhabitants  by  notifying  them 
of  the  time  and  place  of  holding  the  meeting. 

A  meeting  was  held  on  the  1st  of  March,  and  adjourned  to  the  15th, 
at  which  a  tax  was  voted  to  build  a  school-house.  The  tax  list  was 
made  out  by  the  trustees  within  thirty  days,  as  required  by  law,  and 
was  put  into  the  hands  of  the  collector  on  the  22d  of  January, 
1848.  On  the  5th  of  February,  the  trustees  corrected  the  tax  list 
without  the  approval  of  this  department,  having  discovered  errors  in  it 
and  attaching  the  corrected  list  to  the  old  warrant  delivered  it  to  the 
collector.  This  was  an  irregularity  on  the  part  of  the  trustees  after  a 
portion  of  the  tax  had  been  collected.  The  original  tax  list  is  the  one 
which  is  in  force,  and  if  the  trustees  have  discovered  an  error  in  it  they 
may,  after  refunding  any  amount  that  may  have  been  collected  on  such 
tax  list,  if  the  same  shall  be  required,  amend  and  correct  such  tax  list  in 
conformity  to  law,  and  redeliver  it  to  the  collector  with  the  old  warrant 
attached. 

Per  Morgan,  June,  1848. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  27 

Where  one  trustee  engages  a  teacher  to  teach  in  the  place  designated  by  a  district 
meeting  and  the  other  two  engage  a  teacher  to  teach  in  a  place  selected  by 
themselves,  neither  is  a  legal  school. 

One  trustee  cannot  legally  engage  a  teacher  for  the  district,  neither  can  two  trus- 
tees legally  engage  a  teacher,  to  teach  in  a  place  designated  by  themselves 
when  the  district  have  selected  another  place. 

The  school-house  in  District  No.  7,  Guilford,  Chenango  county,  was 
destroyed  by  fire  in  January,  1847.  In  February  following,  the  inha- 
bitants in  district  meeting,  voted  to  hire  a  temporary  place  for  the 
school.  Accordingly  a  school  was  regularly  opened  on  the  12th  of 
May,  1847,  in  the  place  so  designated.  In  the  following  winter  two  of 
the  trustees  opened  a  school  in  another  place,  without  the  vote  of  the 
district  and  gave  an  order  upon  the  town  superintendent  for  two-thirds 
of  the  teacher's  money  apportioned  to  the   district,  which  was  paid. 

In  the  meantime,  Mr.  Mills,  the  other  trustee  opened  a  school  in  the 
house  which  had  been  designated  by  the  district  for  the  summer  school. 

Each  party  claims  a  right  to  the  public  money,  but  neither  is  entitled 
to  it,  as  neither  school  was  legally  established. 

In  all  cases  the  inhabitants  of  a  district  are  to  designate  the  place 
where  the  school  shall  be  kept,  and  trustees  alone  are  responsible  for 
the  expenses  incurred  in  support  of  a  school  opened  by  them  without 
this  authority  from  the  district. 

One  trustee  cannot  hire  a  teacher  or  open  a  school  without  the  con- 
currence of  at  least  one  other  trustee.  Nor  is  any  act  of  the  trustees 
valid,  without  all  being  consulted,  and  without  a  concurrence  of  a 
majority. 

The  public  money  obtained  on  the  order  of  the  two  trustees,  could 
not  be  applied  to  the  payment  of  their  teacher,  as  the  school  was  not 
a  district  school. 

It  is  therefore  hereby  adjudged  and  decided,  that  the  public  money 
apportioned  to  District  No.  7,  Guilford,  for  teacher  s  wages,  cannot  be 
applied  to  the  payment  of  either  of  the  teachers  employed  in  the  schools 
hereinbefore  mentioned. 

Per  Morgan,  July  14,  1848. 

Trustees  have  no  lien  on  moneys  belonging  to  the  district,  for  expenses  incurred 

by  them  in  its  behalf. 
If  they  have  been  directed  by  the  district  to  act,  they  can  indemnify  themsolves 

by  levying  a  tax  without  a  vote  of  the  district  for  that  purpose. 

Mr.  Charles  Kendall,  a  trustee  of  District  No.  3,  Bethany,  Genesee 
county,  had  in  his  hands  118.18  belonging  to  said  district.  At  a 
special  meeting,  held  May  6,  1848,  said  sum  was  appropriated  by  a  vote 
of  the  district  for  the  purchase  of  a  stove  and  other  purposes. 

Mr.  Kendall  claims  that  the  district  should  pay  him  for  the  use  of  a 
stove  bought  by  him,  and  placed  in  the  school-house  without  the 
authority  of  a  vote  of  the  district.  The  district  refused  to  purchase  the 
stove  of  Mr.  Kendall,  bought  by  him  in  good  faith,  and  he  retains  in  his 
hands  $3   for  the  use  thereof.     The  good  or  bad  designs  either  of 


28  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Mr.  Kendall  or  of  the  district,  can  in  no  wise  affect  the  case,  so  as  tc 
render  the  district  liable  for  the  stove. 

Mr.  Kendall  also  claims  that  he  should  be  allowed  $3,  which  he 
alleges  he  paid  for  the  district,  in  pursuance  of  a  vote  of  the  district. 
It  is  not  stated  when  nor  for  what  purpose  the  $3  were  expended, 
nor  are  any  dates  given,  except  that  the  annual  report  of  the  trustees 
in  1847,  acknowledged  the  $3,  as  a  debt  due  Mr.  Kendall  from  the 
district.  But  the  district  clerk  certifies  that  the  records  of  the  district 
contain  no  mention  of  the  said  $3. 

Mr.  Kendall  fails  to  establish  a  good  claim  against  the  district  for 

the  16. 

Per  A.  G.  Johnson,  Dep.  Supt.,  August  5,  1818. 

The  official  acts  of  two  trustees,  performed  without  notifying  or  consulting  the 
other,  are  illegal  and  void. 

At  a  district  meeting  held  in  District  No.  7,  Guilford,  Chenango 
county,  September  5th,  1848,  a  resolution  was  passed  directing  the  school 
to  be  kept  in  a  room  near  Samuel  Godfrey's,  three  years  from  the 
1st  day  of  April  preceding. 

It  appears  that  the  school-house  in  District  No.  7,  was  burned  in 
January,  1847.  On  the  20th  of  February,  1847,  a  meeting  was  held  in 
the  district,  at  which  a  site  for  a  school-house  was  designated.  This 
meeting  was  adjourned  to  the  27th  of  the  same  month,  when  the 
vote  establishing  the  site  was  rescinded.  Two  of  the  trustees  called 
a  special  meeting,  to  be  held  on  the  15th  of  September,  1847, 
without  notifying  or  consulting  the  other  trustee.  At  this  meeting,  a 
tax  was  voted  to  pay  for  the  site  of  a  school-house,  without  designating 
the  same,  and  also  a  tax  to  build  a  school-house. 

The  two  trustees  made  out  a  tax  list,  dated  December  24,  1847,  and 
delivered  it  with  their  warrant  attached,  to  the  collector,  on  the  4th 
of  January  following,  more  than  three  months  after  the  tax  was  voted. 
With  the  money  thus  raised,  a  school-house  was  built  upon  the  site 
selected  by  the  district,  on  the  20th  day  of  February,  but  which 
was  annulled  by  said  district,  at  the  adjourned  meeting  of  the  27th 
of  the  same  month. 

The  proceedings,  in  raising  the  tax  and  building  the  school-house 
cannot  be  sustained.  The  meeting  called  by  two  trustees,  without 
consulting  or  notifying  the  other  trustee,  was  illegal,  and  the  votes  of 
that  meeting  were  void. 

It  is  therefore  decided  that  the  house  built  upon  the  site  not  esta- 
blished by  the  district,  and  with  a  tax  not  legally  raised,  is  not  the 
school-house  of  the  district,  and  that  the  vote  of  the  district  taken  at 
the  meeting  of  the  5th  of  September,  1848,  ordering  the  school  to  be 
kept  "  in  the  room  near  Samuel  Godfrey's,"  was  legal. 

Per  Morgan,  November  16,  1818. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  29 

Where  a  person  voted  at  a  district  meeting  on  the  ground  that  he  had  $50  in  per- 
sonal property  liable  to  taxation,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  include  him 
in  their  tax  list,  even  though  his  name  be  not  on  the  assessment  roll  of  the 
town,  and  if  they  neglect  to  do  so,  the  department  will  set  aside  their  assess- 
ment, and  order  them  to  include  the  person  so  left  out. 

At  a  district  meeting  held  in  District  No.  8,  Marcy,  Oneida  county, 
on ' the  18th  day  of  August,  1848,  a  tax  of  $100  was  voted  to  be 
raised  by  two  equal  installments,  for  the  purpose  of  building  a  school- 
house. 

The  trustees  made  out  a  tax  list  for  the  whole  amount,  and  after 
giving  the  notice  required  by  law,  and  no  one  appearing  before  them  to 
claim  reduction,  delivered  it  with  their  warrant  attached  to  the  collector. 

Objection  is  now  made  to  this  assessment,  because  persons  are  not 
included  in  the  tax  list  who  voted  at  the  meeting  to  raise  the  tax,  upon 
the  qualification  of  having  personal  property  to  the  amount  of  $50  liable 
to  taxation. 

In  making  out  the  tax  list,  trustees  should  assess  all  the  taxable 
inhabitants  of  their  district,  whether  they  are  included  in  the  last 
assessment  roll  of  the  town  or  not.  But  they  are  not  required  to 
include  a  person  in  a  tax  list,  upon  the  supposition  that  he  has  personal 
property  liable  to  taxation.  They  must  have  satisfactory  proo^  of  it,  as 
that  a  person  has  come  into  possession  of  property  since  the  last  assess- 
ment roll  of  the  town,  by  inheritance  or  otherwise,  or  as  in  the  present 
case,  that  a  person  voted  at  a  district  meeting  under  the  qualification  of 
having  $50  personal  property  liable  to  taxation. 

The  trustees  must  include  such  persons  in  their  tax  list.  It  is  there- 
fore hereby  decided  that  the  tax  list  made  out  by  the  trustees  of 
District  No.  8,  Marcy,  in  which  all  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district 
were  not  included,  is  illegal. 

Per  Morgan,  November  20,  1848. 

Trustees  of  a  school  district  have  the  sole  power  of  making  contracts  relating  to 
their  districts,  and  of  accepting  the  work  performed  under  them. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  7,  Depuyster,  St.  Lawrence  county,  by 
authority  from  the  district,  contracted  with  a  builder  to  construct  a 
school-house,  to  be  completed  by  the  1st  of  November,  1848.  The 
house  was  not  completed  until  about  a  month  after  the  time  specified, 
and  was  not  such  an  one  in  every  particular  as  was  contemplated  in  the 
contract. 

After  consultation,  the  trustees  accepted  the  building,  thinking  it 
better  to  do  so  than  to  subject  themselves  and  the  district  to  further 
trouble. 

The  acceptance  of  the  building  is  appealed  from,  on  the  ground  that 
the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district  have  been  wronged. 

The  trustees  of  a  school  district  have  the  sole  power  of  making  con- 
tracts relating  to  their  district,  and  of  accepting  the  work  performed 
under  them.  And  in  the  absence  of  fraud  or  bad  faith,  there  appears 
to  be  no  way  of  rendering  them  liable  for  their  acts. 


30  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

In  the  present  case,  there  appears  to  he  no  evidence  of  had  faith  or 
intention  to  defraud  the  district.  This  department  cannot  therefere 
interfere. 

Per  Morgan,  January  27,  1849. 

The  trustees  of  a  district  are  the  only  legal  authority  by  which  the  vote  of  a 
district  can  be  carried  into  execution. 

At  a  special  meeting  held  in  District  No.  2,  Centreville,  Allegany 
county,  November  4th,  1848,  it  was  voted  to  change  the  site  of  the 
school-house,  by  a  majority  of  votes.  The  district  being  an  altered  one 
this  vote  was  sufficient. 

The  site  selected  is  situated  at  the  extreme  southern  part  of  the 
district,  making  tbe  distance  which  children  residing  in  the  extreme 
northern  part  of  the  district  would  be  compelled  to  travel,  about  four 
miles. 

The  inhabitants  authorized  Mr.  Asa  Eobbins  to  superintend  the 
removal  of  the  house,  without  being  associated  with  the  trustees. 

The  trustees  forbade  Mr.  Eobbins  to  move  the  house  from  the  old 
site.  He,  however,  disregarding  their  remonstrance,  located  it  upon 
the  new  site. 

The  trustees  of  a  district  are  the  only  legal  authority  by  which  the 
votes  of  the  district  can  be  carried  into  execution.  And  although  the 
inhabitants  at  a  district  meeting  may  direct  that  the  trustees  shall 
contract  with  a  certain  person  to  perform  certain  work,  and  that  such 
person  shall  be  associated  zvith  the  trustees  in  such  work,  they  cannot 
authorize  such  person  to  do  any  act,  nor  can  the  district  contract  with 
him,  except  through  the  trustees 

The  vote  directing  Mr.  Eobbins  to  superintend  the  removal  of  the 
school-house  without  the  intervention  of  the  trustees,  was  therefore 
illegal.  And  Mr.  Eobbins  became  a  trespasser,  after  being  forbidden  by 
the  trustees  to  move  the  school-house. 

Per  Morgan,  February  3,  1849. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  inhabitants  of  a  school  district  to  dispose  of  the  old  school- 
house,  and  to  apply  the  avails  thereof  towards  purchasing  a  new  house 
and  site  Neglecting  so  to  do,  this  department  will  set  aside  proceedings  to 
raise  a  tax  for  building  the  new  house. 

The  points  relied  upon  by  the  appellants  are  in  substance,  as  follows  : 
1st.  That  the  district  not  being  an  altered  one,  and  the  site  having 
been  changed  by  a  majority  vote,  and  without  the   certificate  of  the 
town  superintendent,  the  proceedings  were  invalid  on  this  account. 

To  this  it  is  a  sufficient  answer  that  the  district  had  no  title  to  the  site 
on  which  the  school-house  stood,  and  it  was  therefore  lawful  for  a  ma- 
jority of  tbe  inhabitants  to  direct  the  purchase  of  a  site  without  the 
certificate  of  the  town  superintendent. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  ,31 

2d.  That  the  house  owned  and  occupied  by  the  district  as  a  school- 
house,  was  not  sold  and  the  avails  applied  in  diminution  of  the  tax  for 
building  a  new  house. 

This  point,  in  the  judgment  of  the  superintendent,  is  well  taken.  The 
tax  payers  of  the  district  had  a  right  to  the  avails  of  the  sales  of  the 
old  house  in  diminution  of  their  tax,  for  building  the  new  one ;  and  in 
the  absence  of  any  direction  of  the  district  on  the  subject,  it  was  the 
duty  of  the  trustees  to  have  sold  the  house  and  applied  the  proceeds  to 
the  reduction  of  the  aggregate  amount  voted  by  the  district  for  the 
purchase  of  the  site  and  the  building  of  the  house.  For  aught  that 
appears  to  the  contrary,  the  sum  that  might  have  been  realized  on  the 
sale  might  have  swelled  the  entire  appropriation  for  building  the  house 
to  a  sum  exceeding  $400,  and  thereby  rendered  the  certificate  of  the 
town  superintendent  necessary. 

Upon  the  whole  the  superintendent  sees  no  sufficient  reason  for  dis- 
turbing the-  proceedings  in  this  case,  further  than  to  direct  the  trustees, 
forthwith  to  dispose  of  the  house  formerly  belonging  to  the  district,  on 
the  best  terms  they  can  procure  and  to  apply  the  avails  in  reduction  of 
the  aggregate  amount  of  the  tax  for  purchasing  the  site  and  building 
the  house.  For  this  purpose  the  further  collection  of  the  tax  list  here- 
tofore made  out  will  be  suspended,  and  the  amount  collected  refunded 
and  a  new  tax  list  and  warrant  made  out  for  the  amount  remaining  after 
the  application  of  the  avails  of  the  sale  of  the  old  house  in  accordance 
with  law. 

Per  Young,  January  24,  1844. 

Trustees  should  always  exercise  a  liberal  discretion  in  exempting  indigent  per- 
sons from  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages. 

The  appellant,  Henry  Pulver,  complains  that  the  trustees  of  District 
No.  9,  Redhook  and  Milan,  have  not  exempted  him  from  the  payment 
of  teachers'  wages,  which  he  claims  they  should  have  done  on  account 
of  his  indigent  circumstances. 

It  appears  that  said  Pulver  has  a  family  of  four  children,  that  he  is  in 
poor  health,  and  has  no  means  of  supporting  himself  and  family  except 
by  his  feeble  exertions  as  a  day  laborer  which  afford  a  scanty  supply. 

Trustees  should  always  exercise  a  liberal  discretion  in  exempting  indi- 
gent persons  from  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages.  Poverty  should 
never  be  an  excuse  for  depriving  any  children  in  a  district  of  the  privi- 
leges of  the  school. 

The  trustees  of  said  district  are  therefore  hereby  required  to  exempt 
Henry  Pulver  from  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  in  the  rate  bill 
which  is  now  in  the  collector's  hands,  and  to  make  his  proportion  of  the 
rate  bill  a  charge  upon  the  district. 

Per  Morgan,  November  28,  1848. 


32  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 


A  school  district  has  no  authority  by  law,  and  this  department  will  not  permit  the 
inhabitants,  to  give  a  perpetual  lease  for  the  site  of  a  school-house.  The 
district  should  have  the  fee  simple  before  building. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  5,  in  the  city  of  Troy,  called  a  special 
meeting  of  the  district  to  be  held  on  the  29th  of  February,  1848.  This 
meeting  was  organized  and  adjourned  to  the  27th  of  March  following. 

At  the  adjourned  meeting,  a  resolution  which  had  been  introduced  at 
the  previous  meeting  and  laid  on  the  table  for  future  action  was  called 
up.  The  resolution  was  amended,  and  as  amended  adopted  unani- 
mously.    The  resolution  adopted  read  as  follows : 

'■'■Resolved,  That  the  trustees  of  School  District  No.  5,  of  the  city  of 
Troy,  be  directed  by  and  with  the  consent  of  the  school  commissioners 
of  the  city  of  Troy,  to  lease  from  Messrs.  Marshall,  Belding  and  Christie, 
lots  Nos.  14,  15  and  16,  on  the  north  side  of  Christie-street,  in  the  5th 
ward  of  the  city  of  Troy,  at  a  yearly  rent  not  exceeding  the  sum  of 
$34  per  annum  with  the  privilege  of  buying  off  said  rent  at  seven  per 
cent  within  ten  years  from  date." 

The  contemplated  lease  was  for  the  site  of  a  school-house. 

The  only  question  necessary  to  be  considered  is  this : 

Can  a  school  district  lease  or  purchase  a  site  for  a  school-house  in 
the  manner  contemplated  in  the  resolution  before  mentioned? 

By  the  4th  and  5th  clauses  of  §  62,  chap.  480,  Laws  of  1847,  the  inha- 
bitants of  a  district  have  power  to  designate  a  site  for  a  district  school- 
house,  and  to  lay  such  tax  on  the  taxable  property  of  the  district  as  the 
meeting  shall  deem  sufficient  to  purchase  or  lease  a  suitable  site  for  a 
school-house,  and  to  build,  hire  or  purchase  such  school-house  and  to 
keep  in  repair  and  furnish  the  same  with  the  necessary  fuel  and  appen- 
dages, and  §  82  authorizes  the  trustees  to  carry  such  vote  into  effect. 

The  word  lease  used  here  must  be  interpreted  to  mean  a  lease  for  a 
limited  term,  one,  two  or  three  years,  of  a  lot  of  land  and  building  to 
be  used  by  the  district  till  such  time  as  a  suitable  site  can  be  procured 
in  fee,  or  the  conveyance  of  a  lot  of  land  to  the  district  to  be  the  pro- 
perty of  the  district  so  long  as  it  shall  be  occupied  for  a  school-house 
site. 

Under  the  new  constitution  no  agricultural  land  can  be  leased,  for  a 
longer  period  than  twelve  years,  and  although  individuals  in  cities  may 
still  lease  building  lots  for  longer  terms  or  in  perpetuity,  it  is  certainly 
desirable  that  land  to  be  used  as  the  site  of  a  school-house  should  be 
free  from  any  and  every  incumbrance. 

The  statute  confers  no  authority  upon  a  school  district  to  purchase 
land  and  give  a  mortgage  or  any  other  security  for  the  consideration 
money.  In  the  section  authorizing  the  inhabitants  to  lease,  authority 
is  given  to  raise  a  tax  for  that  purpose.  It  cannot  be,  therefore,  that 
the  authority  to  lease  gives  the  inhabitants  the  privilege  of  voting  that 
such  a  contract  shall  be  entered  into  as  will  entail  a  perpetual  debt  upon 
the  district  and  put  the  people  to  the  necessity  of  raising  a  tax  to  pay 
the  rent  every  year  throughout  all  coming  time.     It  has  heretofore  been 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  33 

held  that  the  district  could  not  purchase  a  site  and  give  a  mortgage  for 
the  purchase  t  money,  one-half  to  be  paid  in  five  years,  the  balance  in 
ten  years.  This  department  has  also  repeatedly  held  that  districts  could 
not  be  permitted  to  buy  a  site  and  erect  a  school-house  upon  land  incum- 
bered by  mortgage. 

No  good  reason  can  be  given  against  permitting  the  district  to  give  a 
mortgage  for  the  purchase  money  of  a  site,  which  will  not  bear  with 
equal  force  against  permitting  them  to  enter  into  a  contract,  by  which 
the  site  of  the  school  may  be  subjected  to  a  perpetual  incumbrance.  If 
a  mortgage  is  given,  the  interest  must  be  paid  annually,  and  the  princi- 
pal within  some  specified  time.  If  a  perpetual  lease  is  given,  the 
interest  of  the  stipulated  value  of  the  land  must  be  paid  annually,  but 
the  principal  cannot  be  paid  at  all  except  at  the  option  of  the  lessor. 
The  fact  that  the  principal  cannot  be  demanded,  is  not  a  sufficient  reply 
to  the  objection,  for  the  real  difficulty  is  that  the  lien  and  incumbrance 
can  only  be  removed  with  the  consent  of  persons  claiming  the  lien. 

What  is  this  contract  as  contemplated  in  the  resolution  ?  It  is  just 
this.  The  lots  are  assumed  to  be  worth  about  $487.  The  present 
owners  say  that  the  district  may  have  an  unconditional  title  in  fee 
conveyed  to  them  at  any  time  in  ten  years,  on  the  payment  of  that  sum 
and  the  interest  annually,  at  7  per  cent.  But  if  the  $487  is  not  paid 
within  ten  years,  then  the  owners  may  demand  $500  or  a  $1000,  or 
just  such  sum  as  they  may  think  proper. 

A  mortgage  may  be  foreclosed,  if  interest  and  principal,  or  either,  are 
not  punctually  paid,  and  the  premises  sold,  but  in  that  case  the  proceeds, 
after  paying  the  debt  and  costs,  are  refunded  to  the  mortgagor. 

If  rent  is  not  punctually  paid,  the  landlord  may  reenter  and  take 
possession  of  the  premises  leased,  together  with  all  the  improvements, 
<tud  may  have  judgment  for  costs. 

If,  therefore,  any  incumbrance  upon  a  school-house  site  is  allowable, 
a  mortgage  would  be  preferable  to  a  perpetual  lease. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained,  and  the  resolution  adopted  by  the 
meeting  of  the  27th  March  aforesaid  is  set  aside  and  declared  null  and 
void.  If  the  district  need  a  new  school-house,  the  site  for  it  must  be 
purchased,  and  a  tax  levied  to  pay  for  it. 

Per  Morgan,  July  6,  1848. 

In  designating  a  site  for  a  school-house,  the  description  should  be  by  metes  and 
bounds,  and  the  quantity  of  land  should  be  stated,  that  every  inhabitant 
of  the  district  may  be  able  to  vote  intelligently. 

At  a  special  meeting  held  in  District  No.  6,  Lansing,  March  1,  1849, 
resolutions  were  passed  to  change  the  site  of  the  school -house  "to  the 
first  corner  north  of  the  road,  on  a  piece  of  land  owned  by  Mary 
Dickerson  ;"  to  raise  a  tax  to  purchase  the  new  site,  and  also  a  tax  of 
$300  to  build  a  school-house,  &c. 

The  notices  for  this  meeting  having  been  deficient  and  improperly 
given,  another  special  meeting  was  called,  to  be  held  March  15,  1849. 

[Digest.]  5 


34  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

At  this  last  meeting,  a  resolution  was  passed  confirming  the  proceedings 
of  the  meeting  of  the  1st  of  March. 

The  principal  point  in  the  case  is,  that  the  site  was  not  sufficiently 
designated. 

The  resolution  to  move  the  site  "  to  the  first  corner  north  on  the 
road,"  is  too  vague  and  indefinite,  and  cannot  be  regarded  in  law.  It 
does  not  state  whether  the  trustees  are  authorized  to  purchase  one-half 
acre  or  five  acres  on  the  corner,  nor  is  the  description  of  the  land  given 
sufficient  to  give  an  idea  of  its  location. 

In  designating  a  site  for  a  school-house,  the  description  should  be  by 
metes  and  bounds,  and  the  quantity  of  land  should  be  given,  that  every 
inhabitant  of  the  district  may  be  able  to  vote  intelligently. 

Per  Morgan,  April  18,  1849. 

When  the  trustees  have  contracted,  to  locate  the  school-house  on  any  particular 
place  upon  the  site,  in  the  absence  of  any  instructions  from  the  district,  this 
department  will  not  interfere. 

The  trustees  located  a  school-house  a  few  feet  less  than  four  rods  from 
the  south  line  of  their  lot  which  is  bounded  on  the  highway.  The 
appellants  and  a  majority  of  the  district  desired  to  leave  full  four  rods 
in  front.  The  trustees,  however,  in  the  absence  of  any  explicit  instruc- 
tions or  direction  from  the  district,  agreed  upon  the  present  location  and 
entered  into  a  contract  with  a  builder  who  had  commenced  his  work 
prior  to  any  instructions  from  the  district.  The  trustees  having  gone  on. 
for  aught  that  appears  to  the  contrary,  in  good  faith  in  the  location  of 
the  house  prior  to  any  expression  of  the  wishes  of  the  district,  and 
having  entered  into  contracts  and  incurred  liabilities  in  the  prosecution 
of  the  work,  it  is  deemed  unwise  and  inexpedient  to  subject  the  district 
to  the  expense  which  must  be  incurred  by  a  change  in  the  location. 

The  appeal  is  dismissed. 

Per  A.  G.  Johnson,  Dept.  Supt.,  August  30,  1849. 

A  majority  of  voters  at  a  school  district  meeting  may  empower  the  trustees  to 
purchase  additional  territory  adjoining  the  school-house  site,  for  the  purpose 
of  enlarging  their  grounds  for  school  purposes.  It  is  not  a  case  of  removal 
of  site. 

The  only  question  involved  in  this  appeal  is  whether  the  purchase  of 
an  additional  quantity  of  land  adjoining  that  on  which  the  former  school- 
house  of  the  district  had  been  erected,  and  which  was  burned  down, 
rendering  it  necessary  for  the  district  to  build  a  new  one,  and  the  re- 
building of  the  district  school-house  wholly  or  in  part  upon  the  new 
ground  thus  purchased,  is  such  an  act  as  requires  the  assent  of  two-thirds 
of  the  voters  present  at  a  district  meeting  called  specially  for  the  purpose 
under  the  provisions  of  §  1,  No.  85,  of  the  Laws  relating  to  common 
schools.  I  do  not  doubt  the  legal  right  of  a  majority  of  the  voters  in 
any  district  meeting  duly  convened,  to  lay  a  tax  upon  their  district  to 
purchase  ground  additional  to  and  adjoining  a  site  already  owned  by  the 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  35 

district,  if  such  ground  be  suitable  for  the  purpose  of  the  existing  site, 
and  the  school, — such  as  play  ground  for  the  children,  wood-house  or 
other  appendages.  Nor  could  the  certificate  of  the  town  superintendent 
be  necessary  to  render  such  an  act  legal  any  more  than  for  building  a 
wood-house,  or  repairing  the  school-house.  The  district,  as  I  under- 
stand the  case,  owned  no  more  ground  than  was  covered  by  the  build- 
ings. Now  what  were  the  acts  which  the  law  intended  to  prohibit  the 
mere  majority  from  doing  after  a  site  had  been  purchased  and  a  school- 
house  built  or  purchased  for  the  district  while  the  same  remained  un- 
altered ? 

Certainly  not  to  prevent  the  purchase  of  more  ground  immediately 
adjoining,  if  necessary,  nor  the  erection  of  additional  buildings  thereon, 
if  "the  exigencies  of  the  district  required  it  for  the  accommodation  of  the 
school,  or  even  the  erection  of  a  new  house  should  it  be  necessary. 

These  are  acts  which,  in  my  judgment  it  is  perfectly  competent  for 
the  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  to  perform,  wken  assem- 
bled in  a  school  district  meeting.  I  cannot  hold  this  to  be  such  a 
change  of  site  as  comes  within  the  provisions  of  the  section  above 
mentioned. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  July  10,  184G. 

The  department  will  annul  the  certificate  of  a  teacher  for  cruel  and  unreasonable 
discipline  in  the  government  of  a  school. 

Mr.  Ely  was  employed  as  a  teacher  in  District  No.  7,  Amity,  by  the 
trustees,  on  the  4th  of  December  last,  and  soon  afterwards  commenced 
his  school,  under  a  certificate  of  qualification,  granted  by  the  town 
superintendent.  From  the  statement  of  the  respondents,  in  answer  to 
the  appeal,  it  appears  "  that  much  dissatisfaction  prevailed  in  the  dis- 
trict, on  account  of  the  severe,  not  to  say  outrageous  manner  pursued 
by  the  teacher  in  punishing  the  scholars."  And  on  a  visitation  of  the 
school  on  the  day  above  referred  to  by  the  town  and  county  superinten- 
dents, but  twenty-eight  out  of  fifty-eight  children  on  the  teacher's  list 
were  present.  "  The  great  part  of  the  absentees,  Ely  acknowledged,  had 
been  driven  from  the  school  in  consequence  of  his  severity,  &c.  He  also 
remarked  to  us,  that  '  if  he  could  get  rid  of  a  few  more,  he  thought  he 
could  govern  the  rest.'  " 

The  respondents  further  state,  during  the  examination  "  the  greatest 
confusion,  insubordination  and  anarchy  continued ;"  that  the  teacher 
was  informed  at  the  close,  and  after  the  children  had  left,  in  the  most 
kind  and  friendly  manner  that  some  method  better  calculated  to  pre- 
serve order  in  his  school  must  be  adopted,  and  he  was  advised  to 
"  address  his  pupils  in  a  spirit  of  kindness,  <fcc,"  at  which  he  evinced 
great  anger,  announced  his  intention  "  to  adopt  and  persist  in  his  own 
course,  and  to  receive  dictation  from  no  man."  The  superintendents 
then  informed  him,  that  in  their  judgment  the  indiscriminate  use  of 
the  rod  was  improper,  that  the  "insubordinate  conduct  of  his  pupils 
was  in  a  measure  owing  to  his  indiscriminate  and  severe  use  not  of  a 
rod,  but  of  a  bush  about  three-quarters  of  an  inch  in  diameter,  and  three 


36  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

feet  long,  with  several  branches  well  twisted  together,"  and  that  unless  a 
reformation  in  this  respect  was  promised,  they  should  be  under  the 
necessity  of  depriving  him  of  his  certificate. 

This  he  peremptorily  refused  to  do,  and  distinctly  informed  the 
superintendents  that  he  should  continue  the  same  course  of  discipline  he 
had  adopted  for  the  government  of  his  school.  Under  these  circum- 
stances, they  deemed  it  their  duty  to  annul  his  certificate. 

The  practice  of  inflicting  corporeal  punishment  upon  scholars,  in  any 
case  whatever,  observes  General  Dix,  has  no  sanction  but  usage.  The 
superintendent  is  not  prepared,  in  the  present  imperfect  condition  of  educa- 
tional science,  entirely  to  prohibit  its  use  as  a  means  of  school  discipline, 
but  he  will  sustain  town  and  county  superintendents  in  every  effort  to 
restrict  it  to  the  smallest  possible  compass  consistent  with  the  preserva- 
tion of  order  and  government,  and  he  will  in  no  case  tolerate  the 
slightest  abuse  in  the  discretion  conferred  in  this  respect  by  usage,  or 
otherwise,  upon  teachers. 

In  this  case  the  town  and  county  superintendents  were  amply  justi- 
fiable in  annulling  the  certificate,  and  their  proceedings  are  therefore 
confirmed,  and  the  appeal  dismissed. 

Per  S.  Young,  February  1,  1844. 

Every  contract  made  with  teachers  in  our  common  schools  necessarily  includes 
the  condition  that  the  agreement  cannot  be  binding  for  a  longer  period  than 
teachers  may  hold  certificates  of  qualification,  and  on  the  annulling  of  their 
certificates  all  claim  for  future  services  ceases. 

The  appellant  in  the  year  1845,  had  made  a  contract  with  the  trus- 
tees of  school  District  No.  10,  in  the  town  of  Champion  to  teach  the 
district  school  for  a  limited  period,  and  at  a  stipulated  price  per  month 
for  his  services ;  and  before  the  expiration  of  the  term  limited  by  the 
contract,  on  the  27th  day  of  November,  1845,  for  causes  satisfactory  to 
that  officer,  the  town  superintendent  annulled  the  certificate  of  qualifi- 
cation, which  act  was  affirmed  by  the  county  superintendent. 

On  appeal  to  the  department,  it  was  deemed  advisable  for  the  reasons 
stated  in  the  decision  then  given,  not  to  interfere  with  the  acts  of  these 
officers,  by  a  formal  reversal  of  their  decisions. 

The  appellant  claimed  of  the  trustees  of  the  district  his  wages,  under 
his  contract,  for  the  unexpired  term  after  the  annulment  of  his  certificate, 
as  before  mentioned,  and  those  officers  or  a  majority  of  them  having 
refused  payment  he  appealed  to  the  county  superintendent,  who  declined 
interfering  on  the  ground  that  the  appellant  had  no  legal  claim  to  com- 
pensation under  his  contract  from  the  time  his  license  as  a  teacher  was 
annulled.  And  from  this  determination,  the  appellant  has  again  appealed 
to  this  department. 

Every  contract  made  by  trustees  with  a  teacher  in  our  common 
schools  necessarily  includes  the  condition  that  the  agreement  cannot  be 
binding  upon  them  for  a  longer  period  than  the  teacher  may  hold  a 
certificate  of  qualification.  I  do  not  mean  by  this  that  trustees  cannot 
with  a  full  knowledge  of  all  the  facts  in  regard  to  a  want  of  license 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  37 

make  a  contract  with  an  unlicensed  teacher  which  will  bind  them  per- 
sonally, but  I  do  hold  that  this  department  cannot  in  the  exercise  of  its 
rightful  powers  and  jurisdiction  be  called  upon  to  enforce  a  performance 
of  any  such  contract. 

I  assume  that  when  the  trustees  made  the  contract  with  the  appellant 
for  his  services  as  a  teacher,  both  parties  understood  that  the  appellant 
had  a  proper  license,  and  that  the  contract  was  to  cease  wdienever  he 
became  legally  disqualified  as  such,  but  if  he  be  able  to  establish  a 
different  contract  by  competent  proof  then  he  must  resort  to  another 
tribunal,  for  this  department  cannot  afford  him  any  relief. 

The  decision  of  the  county  superintendent  is  affirmed  and  the  appeal 
dismissed. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  July  13,  1846. 

A  teacher  employed  under  a  contract,  to  teach  by  the  month,  specified  as  twenty- 
six  days,  is  entitled  to  dismiss  school  every  Saturday  afternoon,  or  each  alter- 
nate Saturday,  according  to  the  custom  of  the  country,  and  the  trustees  have 
no  right  to  withhold  any  portion  of  the  amount  due  him  for  so  doing. 

A  contract  was  made  between  Mary  Dwight  and  Jacob  Harder,  one 
of  the  trustees  of  District  No.  1,  Windsor,  and  part  in  Conklin,  by 
which  she  was  to  teach  the  district  school  at  three  dollars  a  week  for 
an  indefinite  time. 

The  trustees  dissenting  on  the  22d  day  of  November,  a  new  contract 
was  made  between  said  Mary  Dwight  and  Jacob  Harder,  with  the  con- 
sent of  the  other  trustee,  Alanson  Alden,  by  which  she  was  to  teach 
four  months,  at  the  rate  of  twelve  dollars  per  month  of  twenty-six  days. 

The  said  Mary  Dwight  taught  from  November  22,  1847,  to  March 
21,  1848,  inclusive,  a  period  of  one  hundred  and  twenty-one  days, 
deducting  Sundays.  She  therefore  taught  four  months  of  twenty-six 
days,  according  to  contract. 

But  it  is  alleged  by  Harder,  that  the  said  Mary  agreed  to  teach 
Saturdays  or  lose  those  days.  The  said  Mary  denies  this,  and  alleges 
that  "  Saturdays"  were  not  mentioned  when  the  contract  was  made. 
The  affidavit  of  Jared  N.  Hoadley,  confirms  the  allegations  of  said 
Mary  Dwight.  Hoadley  swears  that  Mary  Dwight  agreed  to  teach 
twenty-six  days  for  $12,  on  condition  that  she  taught  four  months. 

Hoadley's  affidavit  proves  a  contract  by  the  month,  at  $12.  Such  a 
contract  would  authorize  the  teacher  to  dismiss  her  school  every  holiday 
and  Saturday  afternoon,  or  every  alternate  Saturday,  according  to  the 
custom  of  the  district.  And  the  custom  of  dismissing  school  every 
Saturday  afternoon  or  every  alternate  Saturday,  is  a  good  and  wholesome 
one. 

The  amount  withheld  by  the  trustees  from  Mary  Dwight  is  $3.11. 

It  is  adjudged  and  decreed  that  said  Mary  is  entitled  to  receive  from 
said  trustees  said  sum  of  $3.11,  in  addition  to  the  sum  of  $44.89  already 
paid  to  her,  and  the  trustees  are  hereby  ordered  to  pay  the  same  to  her 
forthwith. 

Per  Morgan,  June  7,  1848. 


38  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

A  teacher  can  only  be  employed  by  the  trustees.  Therefore  a  vote  taken  at  a 
district  meeting  to  dismiss  a  teacher  and  substitute  another  in  her  place,  is 
illegal  and  void. 

Samuel  T.  Peck  and  James  Smith,  two  of  the  trustees  of  District 
No.  1,  Livingston,  hired  Miss  Susannah  Smith  to  teach  their  winter 
school,  to  commence  November  30th,  1848.  Mr.  Lament,  the  other 
trustee,  was  consulted,  but  did  not  consent  to  the  contract. 

Miss  Smith  commenced  the  school  in  the  school-house  of  the  district, 
at  the  stipulated  time. 

Mr.  Lament  not  being  satisfied  with  the  agreement  of  the  other  trus- 
tees, hired  Miss  Horford  to  teach  a  school  in  another  room. 

At  a  special  meeting  held  in  the  district,  January  20th,  1849,  for  the 
purpose  of  voting  a  tax  to  repair  the  school-house,  and  for  other  pur- 
poses, a  vote  was  taken  and  carried  to  substitute  Miss  Horford  in  the 
school-house,  as  teacher,  in  place  of  Miss  Smith. 

From  this  proceeding  the  two  trustees  appeal. 

In  employing  teachers,  the  trustees  should  consult,  as  far  as  possible, 
the  wishes  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district.  But  when  the  trustees 
have  contracted  with  a  teacher,  thereby  binding  themselves  and  the 
district,  the  inhabitants  cannot  free  themselves  from  the  obligations  thus 
imposed  by  the  official  acts  of  the  trustees. 

Teachers  can  be  employed  only  by  trustees. 

A  contract  made  by  two  trustees,  the  third  being  consulted,  is  valid; 
but  one  trustee  can  perform  no  official  act,  without  the  concurrence  of 
at  least  another,  and  a  consultation  with  both. 

In  this  case,  Miss  Smith  was  legally  employed  as  the  teacher  for  the 
district,  and  could  not  be  dismissed  except  by  the  trustees.  Therefore 
the  proceedings  of  the  district  meeting  on  the  20th  January,  to  dismiss 
Miss  Smith  and  substitute  Miss  Horford  as  teacher,  were  illegal  and 
void,  and  Miss  Horford  is  not  entitled  to  receive  any  of  the  public 
money  or  to  continue  her  instruction  in  the  district  school-house. 
Appeal  sustained. 

Per  Morgan,  March  17,  1849. 

When  an  inhabitant  moves  from  one  school  district  into  another  for  the  purpose 
of  avoiding  an  enumeration  of  his  children  in  the  former  district,  and  imme- 
diately after  the  enumeration  moves  back,  the  town  superintendent  should 
apportion  the  money  drawn  on  account  of  his  children  to  the  former  district. 

In  this  case  the  appellants  transferred  their  residence  from  Joint  Dis- 
trict No.  3,  Cherry  Creek  and  Ellington,  where  they  have  for  several 
years  resided,  to  District  No.  7  in  Cherry  Creek,  on  the  30th  of  Decem- 
ber last,  with  the  obvious  intention  and  design  of  having  their  children 
enumerated  in  the  latter  district,  where  they  generally  attend  school, 
owing  to  some  difficulties  existing  in  District  No.  3.  On  the  1st  of 
January,  both  the  appellants  returned  to  their  former  residences  in  the 
latter  district  where  they  have  since  remained,  and  Avhich  is  their  per 
manent  residence. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  39 

The  town  superintendent  under  these  circumstances  very  properly 
refused  to  sanction  the  fraudulent  attempt  to  evade  the  spirit  and  intent 
of  the  law,  and  apportioned  the  money  drawn  on  account  of  their  chil- 
dren to  District  No.  3.  In  this  he  lias  been  sustained  by  the  county 
superintendent  whose  decision  must  be  affirmed. 

Per  S.  Young,  April  10,  1844. 

A  mortgage  given  to  secure  the  purchase  money  of  real  estate,  is  subject  to  tax- 
ation in  the  district  where  the  mortgagee  resides. 

From  the  statements  of  the  county  superintendent  in  this  ease  it 
appears  that  on  the  12th  of  March  last,  a  tax  was  voted  in  District  No.  8, 
in  which  the  appellant  resides,  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  a  school- 
house,  which  was  duly  assessed  on  the  taxable  inhabitants,  according  to 
law  by  the  trustees  on  the  23d  of  the  same  month.  At  the  time  of  voting 
the  tax  the  appellant  was  the  owner  of  a  farm  in  the  district,  which  was 
leased  to  a  tenant  whose  term  expired  on  the  1st  of  April  subsequently. 
On  or  about  the  18th  of  March  intermediate  the  voting,  and  the  assess- 
ment of  the  tax,  he  sold  the  farm  to  a  non-resident  of  the  district  and 
took  a  mortgage  for  the  purchase  money,  stipulating  to  give  possession 
on  the  expiration  of  the  lease,  from  which  period  interest  on  the  amount 
secured  to  be  paid  by  the  mortgage  was  to  commence.  The  principal 
question  involved  in  the  appeal  is  as  to  the  right  of  the  trustees  to  tax 
the  appellant  for  the  amount  secured  to  be  paid  as  the  purchase  money 
of  the  farm  sold  by  him.  The  county  superintendent  decided  that  the 
trustees  were  legally  authorized  to  include  the  amount  in  their  tax  list, 
under  the  head  of  personal  property,  from  which  decision  the  present 
appeal  is  brought.  The  rule  of  law  in  this  respect,  has  been  correctly 
stated  by  the  county  superintendent.  It  is  that  where  a  farm  is  sold  the 
vendor  remaining  in  the  district  is  taxable  for  the  avails  of  such  sale  as 
personal  property,  whether  such  avails  are  in  the  shape  of  money  or 
securities  for  its  payment,  while  the  purchaser  or  his  agent,  whether 
resident  or  non-resident  is  taxable  for  the  real  estate.  In  the  present 
case  the  farm  of  the  appellant  had  been  sold  and  a  mortgage  executed 
for  the  purchase  money  prior  to  the  assessment  of  the  tax  previously 
voted ;  and  in  accordance  with  the  principle  above  laid  down,  the  appel- 
lant was  clearly  taxable  for  such  purchase  money  as  personal  estate  and 
the  purchaser  as  the  non-resident  owner  of  the  real  estate.  Nor  can  this 
principle  be  in  any  respect  affected  by  the  arrangement  between  the 
parties  relative  to  the  period  when  possession  was  to  be  taken  or  interest 
to  commence  running  on  the  mortgage. 

Per  S.  Young,  December  4,  1844. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  in  laying  a  tax  to  assess  the  same  against  every 
person  within  the  district  who  owns  or  is  in  possession  of  taxable  property 
at  the  time  of  making  out  such  tax  list. 

On  the  3d  day  of  February,  Mr.  Hoyt  sold  all  nis  real  estate  in  said 
district  to  William  Moreau,  and  executed  and  delivered  a  deed  to  him. 


40  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Mr.  Hoyt  remains  in  possession  and  by  the  contract  will  remain  in  pos- 
session till  April  1,  1848.  February  15,  1848,  the  trustees  of  the  district 
proceeded  to  make  out  a  tax  list  upon  a  tax  voted  January  15,  1848,  to 
build  a  school-house.  They  with  a  full  knowledge  of  the  above  sale  and 
conveyance  assessed  Mr.  Hoyt  with  the  farm  and  real  estate  so  sold. 

Mr.  Hoyt  claims  that  the  land  should  have  been  assessed  to  Mr. 
Moreau. 

The  trustees  were  right.  By  §  85,  chap.  480,  Laws  of  1847,  the 
trustees  are  required  to  apportion  a  tax  upon  "  all  the  taxable  inhabi- 
tants holding  property  in  the  district,  according  to  the  valuations  of  the 
taxable  property  which  shall  be  owned  or  possessed  by  them  at  the  time 
of  making  out  such  list."  Mr.  Hoyt,  at  the  time  of  making  out  the  list, 
had  not  given  up  possession  and  must  be  considered  the  possessor. 

It  is  to  be  presumed,  that  the  purchase  money  is  not  to  be  paid  until 
possession  is  delivered,  in  which  case  the  trustees  could  not  assess  the 
price  of  the  farm  to  Mr.  Hoyt  as  personal  property.  The  appeal  is 
dismissed. 

Per  Morgan,  March  18,  1848. 

Contiguous  territory  lying  partly  in  two  or  more  districts,  occupied  and  cultivated 
as  one  farm  is  taxable  in  the  district  in  which  the  occupant  resides. 

The  facts  in  this  case  as  submitted  are  as  follows : 

Whitman  was  the  owner  and  occupant  of  a  farm  in  District  No.  12, 
but  recently  purchased  another  lot  of  land  contiguous  to  his  farm  and 
lying  in  District  No.  2,  and  removed  his  residence  to  District  No.  2. 

Whitman,  residing  in  No.  2,  is  taxable  in  No'.  2,  for  all  the  land  he 
occupies  and  cultivates  which  is  composed  of  contiguous  territory. 

The  farm  lying  in  No.  12,  on  which  he  formerly  resided  lying  conti- 
guous to  the  farm  upon  which  he  now  resides  in  No.  2,  and  both  farms 
being  occupied  by  him,  is  taxable  in  No.  2  and  not  in  No.  12. 

But  the  tenant  of  Whitman  is  a  resident  of  No.  12,  and  must  be  taxed 
there,  for  the  house  and  garden  occupied  by  him. 

Per  Morgan,  June  7,  1848. 

Where  a  tax  payer  voluntarily  moves  from  one  district  to  another  he  is  liable  to  a 
tax  for  building  a  school-house  in  the  latter  district,  even  if  within  four  years 
he  has  paid  a  tax  for  that  purpose  in  the  district  from  which  he  removes. 

Benjamin  Mix,  the  petitioner,  owns  a  farm  partly  situated  in  District 
No.  16,  and  partly  in  No.  10,  Gouverneur,  St.  Lawrence  county.  Until 
last  August  he  lived  within  the  bounds  of  No.  16,  but  at  that  time  he 
moved  into  district  No.  10.  While  a  resident  of  No.  16,  he  contributed 
his  share  of  the  expense  of  building  a  school-house  in  that  district. 
This  was  about  eight  years  since. 

The  inhabitants  of  No.  10,  have  recently  raised  a  tax  to  build  a  new 
school-house  and  have  included  the  farm  of  Mr.  Mix  in  their  tax  list- 
He  wishes  to  be  released  from  the  payment  of  the  tax. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  41 

This  petition  must  be  denied  because  the  law  exempts  only  those  who 
have  been  set  oft'  from  another  district  without  their  consent  within  four 
years  from  the  payment  of  a  tax  for  building  a  school-house. 

Mr.  Mix  voluntarily  moved  from  No.  16  to  No.  10,  and  moreover 
upwards  of  four  years  have  elapsed  since  he  was  taxed  for  building  a 
school-house,  so  that  he  cannot  claim  exemption  on  either  ground. 

The  petition  is  dismissed. 

Per  A.  G.  Johnson,  Dept.  Supt.,  August  7,  1848. 

In  levying  a  tax  for  the  purchase  of  a  school-house  site,  the  district  is  not 

limited  as  to  the  amount  to  be  raised. 
The  certificate  of  the  town  superintendent  is  not  necessary,  and  the  district  may 

by  a  majority  vote  raise  such  an  amount  as  shall  be  necessary  for  the  purpose. 

At  a  special  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  District  No.  5,  Troy,  held 
July  20,  1848,  a  site  for  a  school-house  was  designated  and  a  tax  of  four 
hundred  and  seventy-five  dollars  was  voted  to  pay  for  the  same.  The 
site  thus  designated  was  for  the  second  school-house  in  the  district. 

The  appellant  desires  that  the  proceedings  be  set  aside  for  the  follow- 
ing reasons  : 

1.  Because  the  commissioners  did  not  certify  that  a  larger  sum  than 
four  hundred  dollars  was  necessary  to  purchase  the  site. 

2.  On  the  ground  of  expediency. 

By  sub.  8,  §  62  School  Laws,  provision  is  made  for  designating  sites 
for  two  or  more  school-houses  in  a  district. 

With  the  consent  of  the  town  superintendent  (or  the  commissioners, 
as  in  this  case)"  the  inhabitants  of  a  district,  when  legally  assembled, 
may  by  a  majority  of  votes  of  the  legal  voters  present,  designate  a  site 
for  the  second  school-house  in  their  district  and  may  lay  a  tax  upon  the 
taxable  property  of  the  district  to  purchase  such  site.  The  limitation 
to  four  hundred  dollars  does  not  apply  to  such  cases.  The  section  which 
requires  the  consent  of  the  town  superintendent  to  raise  a  larger  sum 
only  applies  "  to  building,  hiring  or  purchasing  a  school-house."  (See 
§  70,  School  Laws.) 

The  proceedings  of  the  meeting  of  July  20,  were  legal. 

As  to  the  question  of  expediency  this  department  does  not  feel  at 
liberty  to  interfere  without  proof  of  palpable  wrong,  or  abuse  of  power, 
which  does  not  appear  in  this  case. 

This  decision  is  not  intended  to  favor  the  abandonment  of  the  old  site. 

The  appeal  dismissed. 

Per  Morgan,  September  26,  1848. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  expend  the  library  money  on  or  before  the  1st 

day  of  October  of  the  year  in  which  it  is  received. 
Library  money  can  in  no  case  be  expended  for  teachers'  wages  without  permission 

of  the  State  Superintendent. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  a  special  meeting  of  the 
inhabitants  of  School  District  No.  4  in  the  town  of  Danube,  Herkimer 
county,  held  December  31,  1847,  pursuant  to  notice. 

[Digest.]  G 


12  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

At  said  meeting  it  was 

Resolved,  unanimously,  that  the  amount  of  library  money  now  on  hand 
($9.58)  be  appropriated  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  for  the  pre- 
sent term. 

Resolved,  By  a  majority,  by  a  vote  of  eight  to  four,  that  one-half  of 
the  school  library  money  which  will  be  allotted  to  the  district  the  coming 
year,  be  appropriated  to  the  winter  term,  and  the  remaining  half  to  the 
summer  term  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages. 

The  trustees  ought  to  have  expended  the  &9.58  of  library  money  on 
or  before  the  1st  day  of  October  last.  Not  having  done  so,  the  town 
superintendent  must  withhold  from  their  district  the  said  sum  of  $9.58, 
and  also  the  appropriation  of  library  money  for  the  coming  year. 

The  first  resolution  appropriates  money  which  the  town  superinten- 
dent cannot  legally  pay  over  to  the  trustees  or  their  order ;  it  is  there- 
fore nugatory. 

The  second  resolution  is  null  and  void,  for  two  reasons:  1st.  By 
reason  of  not  having  expended  the  last  year's  appropriation  of  library 
money  on  or  before  October  1,  1847,  the  district  is  not  entitled  to  any 
future  appropriation,  except  with  the  leave  of  this  department ;  2d. 
Because  the  law  of  December  15,  1847,  which  took  effect  January  5, 
1848,  provides  that  library  money  shall  not  hereafter  be  expended  for 
teachers'  wages  in  any  case,  without  the  previous  approbation  of  the 
State  Superintendent. 

Therefore  the  proceedings  of  said  district  are  hereby  annulled. 
Per  Morgan,  January  20,  1818. 

A  motion  put  to  vote  by  any  person  other  than  the  chairman  of  the  meeting,  is 

irregular  and  void. 
The  inhabitants  of  a  district  have  no  power  to  dissolve  or  annul  the  district. 

The  first  meeting  in  District  No.  9,  Lloyd,  Ulster  county,  was  held 
August  23,  1848,  at  which  the  following  proceedings  were  had  : 

A  chairman  and  clerk,  pro  tern.,  were  chosen.  The  officers  of  the  dis- 
trict were  elected,  and  a  site  for  the  school-house  designated.  During 
these  proceedings  some  difficulties  arose  upon  questions  of  order. 

_  A  motion  was  made  and  seconded,  that  the  meeting  declare  the 
district  to  be  annulled,  which  the  chairman  refused  to  put,  when  the 
mover  called  for  the  ayes  and  noes,  and  declared  the  motion  to  be 
carried. 

A  motion  was  then  made  to  adjourn,  but  not  being  seconded  the 
chairman  refused  to  put  it  to  vote. 

The  mover  called  the  ayes,  and  declared  the  meeting  adjourned, 
whereupon  many  withdrew. 

The  meeting  continued  its  organization,  and  transacted  business  after 
the  withdrawal  of  some  of  the  inhabitants. 

The  appellant  desires  that  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  held  after 
the  motion  to  adjourn  was  made,  be  declared  void. 

The  motion  to  dissolve  the  district  was  entirely  out  of  order,  as  it 
was  upon  a  question  over  which  the  district  had  no  control.     A  motion 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  43 

to  adjourn  cannot  be  put  to  vote  until  it  is  seconded.     The  chairman 
was  therefore  correct  in  refusing  to  put  to  vote  either  of  these  motions. 

A  motion  put  to  vote  by  any  other  person  than  the  chairman  of  the 
meeting,  is  void. 

The  "appeal  is  dismissed,  and  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  con- 
firmed. 

Per  Morgan,  December  22,  1848. 

If  the  trustees  of  a  school  district  refuse  to  levy  a  tax,  in  pursuance  of  chap.  214, 
of  Laws  of  1847,  to  pay  costs  of  school  district  officers,  who  have  sued  or 
been  sued  in  the  discharge  of  their  official  duties,  this  department  cannot 
interfere. 

The  proper  remedy  is  an  application  to  the  supreme  court  for  a  mandamus. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  7,  De  Kalb  and  Ca%ton,  refuse  to  levy  a 
tax  of  $115.73,  as  directed  by  chap.  214,  Laws  of  1847,  to  remunerate 
the  appellants  for  costs  and  expenses  incurred  by  them  as  former 
trustees  of  the  district. 

An  appeal  is  taken  to  this  department. 

The  superintendent  is  of  opinion  that  this  appeal  cannot  be  enter- 
tained. The  proper  remedy  of  the  appellants  under  the  act  referred  to 
is  by  application  to  the  supreme  court  for  a  mandamus. 

Per  Morgan,  January  4,  1850. 

A  notice  given  by  the  district  clerk  for  a  meeting  is  legal,  though  the  directions 
of  the  trustees  to  the  clerk  to  give  such  notice  were  verbal. 

A  special  meeting  was  held  in  District  No.  5,  Lisbon,  St.  Lawrence 
county,  December  30,  1848,  pursuant  to  a  notice  given  by  the  clerk  for 
the  purpose,  and  the  site  of  the  school-house  was  voted  to  be  changed. 

The  appellants  object  to  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting, 

Because  the  notices  of  the  meeting  by  the  district  clerk  were  upon 
the  verbal  direction  of  the  trustees. 

If  the  district  clerk  gives  the  proper  notices  for  a  special  meeting  the 
proceedings  of  that  meeting  will  not  be  held  to  be  illegal,  although  the 
trustees  may  have  given  the  clerk  only  a  verbal  direction  to  give  the 
notices. 

The  proceedings  of  the  meeting  therefore  are  legal  and  regular. 

Appeal  dismissed. 

Per  Morgan,  March  6,  1849. 

The  clerk  of  a  district  has  no  power  to  authorize  any  person  to  give  notices  for 
a  district,  or  to  do  any  other  act. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  14,  Lockport,  called  a  special  meeting,  to 
be  held  on  the  22d  day  of  March,  1849,  and  directed  the  clerk  of  the 
district  to  give  the  proper  notices. 

Most  of  the  notices  were  given  by  a  son  of  the  clerk.  The  meeting 
held  in  pursuance  of  such  notice  is  alleged  to  be  illegal. 


44  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  district  clerk  to  give  all  notices  for  school 
meetings  in  his  district,  and  in  case  of  his  refusal  or  of  a  vacancy  in 
the  office  of  clerk,  a  trustee  may  give  them. 

But  the  clerk  of  the  district  has  no  power  to  authorize  any  other 
person  to  give  the  notices  or  to  perform  any  other  duties  of  his  office. 
The  town  superintendent  only  can,  in  certain  cases,  authorize  any 
inhabitant  of  the  district  to  give  notices  of  special  meetings. 

The  appeal  is  sustained,  and  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  are 
declared  illegal  and  void. 

Per  Morgan,  April  7,  1849. 

When  the  trustees  make  any  change  in  the  valuation  of  property,  differing  from 
the  valuation,  as  appears  by  the  assessment  roll,  they  should  give  twenty 
days'  notice  of  the  changes  they  have  made  to  the  inhabitants  of  the  district 
affected  thereby. 

The  appellant  in  this  case  represents  that  on  or  about  the  2d  of 
March  last,  a  tax  was  voted  for  the  support  of  schools  at  a  special 
meeting  called  and  held  in  District  No.  1,  under  the  provisions  of  the 
new  school  law ;  and  that  the  trustees,  in  apportioning  the  tax  thus 
voted,  altered  the  valuations  of  the  taxable  property  of  the  district  from 
the  assessment  roll  of  the  town  in  several  instances  specified  by  the 
appellant,  and  among  others,  in  his  own  case,  without  giving  the  notices 
prescribed  by  law,  in  consequence  of  which  a  larger  sum  has  been 
assessed  to  him  and  others  than  was  equitable  and  just. 

The  trustees  in  their  answer,  do  not  deny  the  charge  that  a  departure 
from  the  last  assessment  roll  of  the  town,  was  made  by  them  in  ascer- 
taining the  valuation  of  the  taxable  property  referred  to,  without  giving 
the  notice  prescribed  by  law,  but  claim  that  the  valuations  put  by  them 
on  such  property  were  substantially  correct,  and  in  accordance  with  the 
standard  adopted  by  the  assessor. 

The  superintendent  is  of  opinion  that  the  defense  thus  set  up  by  the 
trustees,  is  invalid  and  untenable.  The  law  specifically  requires  that 
in  all  cases  where  the  valuations  of  taxable  property  cannot  be  ascer- 
tained from  the  last  assessment  roll  of  the  town,  the  trustees  shall 
ascertain  the  same  from  the  best  means  of  information  within  their 
power,  giving  notice  to  all  persons  interested,  and  proceeding  in  the 
same  way  that  town  assessors  are  required  to  proceed  in  the  first 
instance.  Unless  therefore  this  requisition  is  strictly  complied  with, 
the  assessment  thus  made  by  the  trustees  is  illegal  and  invalid,  what- 
ever may  be  the  standard  of  valuation  adopted  by  them,  or  whether 
such  valuations  are  just  and  equitable  or  not. 

The  persons  interested  in  such  alteration  were  entitled  to  notice  in 
the  mode  prescribed  by  law,  and  to  an  opportunity  of  appearing  before 
the  trustees,  and  claiming  a  reduction  of  their  assessments  as  so  ascer- 
tained  ;  and  they  may  legally  avail  themselves  of  the  omission  to  give 
such  notice,  either  to  resist  the  collection  of  the  tax  thus  illegally 
imposed,  or  to  bring  an  appeal  to  this  department  for  such  redress  as 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  45 

may  be  in  its  power  to  afford.     The  tax  list  being  void  in  part,  is  void 
throughout. 

It  is  accordingly  hereby  ordered  that  the  tax  list  made  out  by  the 
trustees  of  District  No.  1,  in  the  town  of  Fowler,  in  pursuance  of  the 
vote  of  the  special  meeting  held  in  said  district  be  and  the  same  is 
hereby  set  aside,  and  the  trustees  are  directed,  and  required  within  thirty 
days  from  the  date  hereof  to  make  out  a  new  tax  list  in  accordance  with 
law,  and  to  deliver  the  same  with  their  warrant  annexed,  to  the  collec- 
tor of  the  district  for  collection,  refunding  if  required  any  amount  here- 
tofore illegally  collected. 

Per  Morgan,  June  4,  1850. 

A.  resident  of  a  district  is  not  responsible  for  the  tuition  of  a  non-resident  pupil 
who  simply  boards  with  the  former,  unless  the  trustees  notify  him  at  the 
commencement  of  the  school  that  he  will  be  held  responsible  for  the  tuition. 

In  this  case  the  appellant  represents  that  the  trustees  have  charged 
him  eighty-two  cents  for  the  tuition  of  Erastus  Hibbard,  the  son  of  a 
non-resident  of  the  district,  and  who  was  a  mere  boarder  in  his  house  ; 
and  he  alleges  in  express  terms,  that  he  did  not  send  him  to  the  school 
nor  engage  to  pay  his  tuition,  and  that  he  had  no  control  or  jurisdiction 
over  him.  No  answer  has  been  put  in  by  the  trustees,  although  a  copy 
of  the  appeal  duly  verified  was  served  upon  one  of  their  number  on  the 
28th  of  April  last.  The  statement  of  the  appellant  therefore  must  be 
taken  to  be  true,  and  under  such  circumstances  he  cannot  be  regarded 
as  legally  liable  for  the  tuition  of  the  boy.  If  the  trustees  had  design- 
ed to  hold  him  responsible,  it  was  their  duty  to  have  apprized  him  of 
the  fact  at  the  commencement  of  the  term.  Not  having  done  so  they 
must  look  to  the  father  of  the  boy. 

It  is  therefore  ordered  that  the  trustees  strike  from  the  rate  bill  the 
charge  against  the  appellant  for  the  tuition  of  Erastus  Hibbard. 

Per  Morgan,  May.  18,  1849. 

A  person  elected  as  a  librarian  of  a  school  district  cannot  be  displaced  except  by 
a  direct  procedure  on  the  part  of  some  competent  legal  authority,  on  infor- 
mation in  the  nature  of  "  quo  warranto,"  or  on  appeal  from  the  election,  even 
though  the  incumbent  be  an  infant. 

This  was  an  appeal  originally  brought  to  the  county  superintendent 
of  Saratoga,  from  the  refusal  of  the  trustees  to  deliver  over  to  the  charge 
of  the  appellant  the  library  of  the  district,  he  having  been  chosen  unani- 
mously as  librarian  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  district,  on  the  first 
Monday  in  October  last.  In  their  answer  to  the  appeal  the  trustees  place 
their  refusal  upon  the  ground  that  the  appellant  is  a  minor  and  could  not 
therefore  execute  a  valid  bond  for  the  preservation  and  safe-keeping  of 
the  books  belonging  to  the  district  library.  The  county  superintendent 
very  properly  overruled  this  defense,  holding  that  the  appellant  though 
ineligible  must  be  recognized  as  the  librarian  "  de  facto"  of  the  district 
so  far  as  the  public  and  third  persons  are  concerned  and  that  his  right  to 


46  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

the  office  could  not  be  tried  in  this  indirect  way.  No  principle  of  law  is 
better  settled  than  that  the  actual  incumbent  of  an  office  holding  under 
color  of  a  legal  election  or  appointment  can  be  displaced  only  by  a 
direct  procedure  on  the  part  of  some  competent  legal  authority  on  in- 
formation in  the  nature  of  a  quo  warranto  or  otherwise ;  and  that  his 
acts  so  far  as  the  public  are  concerned,  will  be  recognized  as  valid  and 
legal  to  all  intents  and  purposes  while  he  continues  to  execute  the  office 
under  claim  of  title.  In  this  case  the  appellant  was  unanimously  elected 
librarian  of  the  district,  notwithstanding  his  admitted  ineligibility,  and 
it  does  not  rest  with  the  trustees  to  deprive  him  of  the  office  in  this  in- 
direct mode.  They  might  have  appealed  from  such  election,  placing 
their  appeal  expressly  upon  the  ground  of  his  ineligibility,  and  the 
county  superintendent  might  have  set  aside  the  election  and  ordered  a 
new  meeting  to  fill  the  vacancy.  But  not  having  resorted  to  this  remedy, 
they  cannot  refuse  to  deliver  over  to  him  the  library  of  the  district  on 
the  ground  of  such  ineligibility ;  nor  are  they  warranted  in  assuming 
that  the  property  of  the  district  will  be  unsafe  in  his  hands  on  the 
ground  of  his  want  of  responsibility.  They  may  remove  him  from  office 
whenever  he  willfully  disobeys  their  directions  in  any  matter  relative  to 
the  preservation  of  the  books  and  appurtenances  of  the  library  or  for 
any  willful  neglect  of  duty,  &c,  &c.  But  they  cannot  refuse  to  recog- 
nize him  as  the  legally  elected  librarian  of  the  district. 

They  are  therefore  hereby  directed  to  deliver  the  library  of  the  dis- 
trict into  his  hands,  and  the  decision  of  the  county  superintendent  is 
hereby  affirmed. 

Per  Young,  January  20,  1845. 

It  is  a  rule  of  this  department,  that  all  acts  of  school  district  officers  will  be 
regarded  as  regular,  unless  duly  appealed  from. 

This  appeal  is  brought  from  the  proceedings  of  a  special  meeting 
held  in  District  No.  9,  Preble  and  Scott,  August  5,  1848,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  receiving  the  report  of  Elam  Dunbar,  as  trustee  of  said  district, 
the  said  Dunbar  having  resigned  his  office  in  December,  1847. 

It  is  immaterial  whether  the  meeting  of  August  5,  1848,  which 
received  and  accepted  the  report  of  Mr.  Dunbar,  was  regular  or  not. 
His  report  and  the  complaints  made  against  him  were  of  acts  previous 
to  the  meeting  of  December,  1847,  at  which  he  resigned,  and  at  which 
his  report  should  have  been  made  and  accepted. 

It  is  a  rule  of  this  department,  that  all  acts  and  proceeding  of  school 
officers  will  be  regarded  regular,  unless  duly  appealed  from.  Whatever 
therefore  may  have  been  the  neglect  of  duty  of  Mr.  Dunbar,  while  in 
office,  provided  he  has  not  rendered  himself  liable  by  squandering  or 
losing  moneys  belonging  to  the  district,  he  will  be  regarded  as  having 
discharged  his  duties  faithfully. 

Appeal  dismissed. 

Per  Morgan,  January  24,  1849. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  47 

Where  a  trustee  is  elected  to  the  office  of  supervisor,  the  term  of  his  trusteeship 
is  in  no  wise  affected  thereby. 

In  October,  1846,  Matthew  Brown  was  chosen  trustee  of  District 
No.  11,  Bethel,  for  a  full  term  of  three  years.  In  the  spring  of  1848, 
he  was  elected  supervisor  of  the  town.  It  being  supposed  that  his 
office  of  trustee  became  vacant  by  accepting  the  office  of  supervisor, 
Mr.  Thomas  C.  Horton  was  elected  to  fill  the  supposed  vacancy  in 
October,  1848. 

The  law  which  existed  previous  to  the  time  the  present  law  took 
effect,  prohibited  the  supervisor  of  a  town  from  holding  the  office  of 
trustee.  The  present  law,  however,  does  not  contain  such  a  prohibition. 
The  election  of  Mr.  Brown  did  not  therefore  affect  his  tenure  of  the 
office  of  trustee.  He  is  the  legal  trustee,  and  the  election  of  Mr.  Horton 
in  his  stead  was  irregular. 

Per  Morgan,  April  10,  1849. 

This  department  will,  on  proper  application,  direct  an  increased  proportion  of 
the  public  money  to  be  applied  to  reduce  the  rate  bill,  to  be  made  out  at 
the  close  of  the  term,  where  the  inhabitants  or  any  considerable  portion  of 
them  withdraw  their  support  from  a  teacher  duly  qualified,  without  good 
cause. 

The  principle  has  been  repeatedly  recognized  by  this  department, 
that  when  the  inhabitants  of  a  school  district  or  any  considerable  por- 
tion of  them  withdraw  their  support  from  a  teacher  duly  employed  by 
the  trustees,  and  suitably  qualified,  without  any  justifiable  cause,  leaving 
those  who  continue  to  send  to  the  school,  to  defray  the  principal  burden 
of  the  expense,  an  increased  proportion  of  the  public  money,  appli- 
cable to  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages,  will,  on  a  proper  application, 
be  directed  to  be  applied  in  diminution  of  such  expense,  on  the  rate 
bill  to  be  made  out  at  the  close  of  the  term.  In  this  case  several  of 
the  inhabitants  withdrew  their  children  from  the  school,  and  sent  them 
to  a  private  school  established  in  the  neighborhood,  for  no  other  reason, 
so  far  as  appears  from  the  testimony,  than  that  arising  from  the  price 
contracted  by  the  trustees  to  be  paid  for  the  teacher's  services,  which  was 
$14  per  month.  It  is  in  evidence  that  he  held  a  certificate  of  qualification 
in  due  form  ;  that  he  sustained  a  good  examination  and  taught  a  good 
school ;  and  in  the  absence  of  any  well  founded  objection  to  the  charac- 
ter or  qualifications  of  the  teacher,  it  was  incumbent  upon  the  inhabi- 
tants to  sustain  the  school  during  the  term  for  which  he  was  employed. 
Two-thirds  of  the  children  usually  in  attendance  were  withdrawn  from  the 
school,  and  the  rate  bills  as  to  those  who  continued  to  send  were  exorbi- 
tantly increased,  and  justice  and  equity  require  that  the  superintendent 
should  relieve  them  from  this  hardship. 

The  decision  of  the  county  superintendent,  directing  five-sixths  of 
the  public  money  to  be  applied  to  the  support  of  the  winter  school,  is 
accordingly  hereby  affirmed,  and  the  appeal  dismissed. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  October  15,  1845. 


48  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Trustees  in  the  absence  of  express  directions  from  the  district,  may,  in  their  dis- 
cretion, apply  the  public  money  for  the  support  of  schools  as  they  may  deem 
proper,  but  when  they  apply  more  than  (J-)  two-thirds  thereof  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  winter  school,  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  will 
interfere. 

It  seems  that  the  trustees  applied  more  than  two-thirds  of  the  public 
money  for  the  support  of  the  winter  school  in  1846,  leaving  the  balance 
for  the  summer  school.  In  the  absence  of  any  express  direction  on  the 
part  of  the  district,  the  trustees  have  a  legal  right  in  their  discretion  to 
apply  the  public  money  as  they  may  deem  proper,  which  discretion  will 
always  be  controlled  by  the  department,  when  those  officers  apply  more 
than  two-thirds  of  the  public  money  to  the  winter  schools,  leaving  the 
balance  for  the  summer  schools.  The  act  which  should  have  been 
appealed  from,  was  the  payment  of  nearly  all  the  public  money  towards 
the  support  of  the  winter  school  in  1846.  The  trustees  having  the 
strict  legal  right  to  do  as  they  have,  and  no  legal  steps  having  been 
taken  to  correct  it  (more  than  thirty  days  having  elapsed  before  the 
bringing  of  the  appeal),  as  a  legal  consequence  they  are  bound  to  make 
out  their  rate  bill  in  accordance  with  their  former  acts,  that  is,  apply 
the  residue  of  the  public  money  to  the  summer  school,  and  make  out 
their  rate  bill  for  the  balance. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  April  8,  1847. 

The  public  money  apportioned  for  one  year  cannot  be  applied  to  the  paymentof 
teachers'  wages  of  a  previous  year,  except  when  a  term  embraces  a  portion 
of  two  years,  in  which  case  the  public  money  of  either  year  may  be  applied 
indiscriminately  to  that  term. 

The  appellees  (two  of  the  trustees)  gave  an  order  upon  the  town 
superintendent  of  Hoosick  for  $10  to  be  paid  out  of  the  apportion- 
ment of  public  money  for  1849,  in  favor  of  the  teacher  for  the  summer 
term  of  1848.  The  public  money  apportioned  for  one  year  cannot  be 
applied  to  the  expenses  of  a  previous  year,  except  when  the  term 
embraces  a  portion  of  two  years ;  in  which  case  the  public  money  of  either 
year  may  be  applied  indiscriminately  to  that  term. 

The  trustees  could  not  legally  apply  any  of  the  apportionment  for 
1849,  to  the  payment  of  the  teacher  of  the  summer  of  1848. 

The  appeal  is  sustained. 

Per  Morgan,  April  3,  1849. 

Trustees  have  no  power  to  provide  by  the  same  rate  bill,  for  the  compensation  of 
teachers  for  different  terms  of  instruction. 

This  appeal  presents  the  question  whether  the  wages  of  the  same 
teacher,  employed  for  different  terms,  but  at  the  same  rate  of  compen- 
sation can  be  legally  included  in  the  same  rate  bill,  treating  the  two 
periods  as  one  term,  and  assessing  the  balance  of  the  teacher's  wages 
after  applying  a  portion  of  the  public  money  thereto,  upon  the  inhabi- 
tants sending  to  school. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  40 

Superintendent  Dix  held,  in  a  similar  case,  that  it  was  wholly  inad- 
missible to  provide  by  the  same  rate  bill  for  the  compensation  of  two 
teachers  for  different  terms  of  instruction.  (See  Common  School  Deci- 
sions, p.  165.)  This  decision  is  in  strict  accordance  with  the  letter 
and  spirit  of  the  school  act,  and  conformable  to  principles  of  equity. 
No  rule  of  legal  or  equitable  right  calls  for  or  can  sanction  the  imposition 
of  a  tax  or  burthen  upon  any  individual  school  district  inhabitant  unless 
he  shall  have  voluntarily  placed  himself  in  a  condition  to  have  that 
burthen  or  tax  imposed  according  to  the  express  terms  of  the  law,  under 
which  the  school  district  officers  act. 

Per  Morgan,  July  22,  1849. 

A  rate  bill  cannot  be  legally  made  out  for  any  otber  purpose  than  teachers'  wages 
and  for  fuel. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  6,  Cameron,  hired  a  teacher  in  the  winter 
of  1847-8  for  three  months.  lie  taught  about  two  months,  when  he 
discontinued  his  school  which  was  not  opened  again  during  the  winter. 
The  teacher  was  paid  twenty  dollars  of  public  money,  the  balance  re- 
maining unpaid.  Sometime  in  November,  1848,  the  trustees  made  out 
a  rate  bill  for  the  amount  remaining  unpaid,  and  included  in  it  a  tax  for 
fuel,  and  also  a  tax  for  sundries,  amounting  to  $3.00. 

It  is  objected  that  the  tax  of  $3.00  cannot  legally  be  included  in  a 
rate  bill.  The  objection  is  well  taken.  A  rate  bill  can  be  made  out  for 
no  other  purpose  than  for  teachers'  wages,  and  for  fuel.  The  trustees 
could  not,  therefore,  legally  include  the  tax  of  #3.00  in  the  rate  bill. 

Per  Morgan,  March  5,  1849. 

An  inhabitant  cannot  gain  a  residence  in  another  district  by  taking  a  portion  of 
his  family  with  himself  thereto,  so  as  to  send  his  children  to  school  therein. 

The  following  statement  of  facts  is  submitted  by  the  parties  : 

Barclay  Miller  owns  a  farm  in  District  No.  5,  upon  which  he  lived 
till  the  spring  of  1847,  when  he  removed  to  another  farm  in  District 
No.  12,  leaving  his  son  in  the  occupancy  of  the  farm  in  No.  5. 

On  or  about  the  25th  of  November,  1848,  a  district  school  was  com- 
menced in  No.  5,  to  which  Mr.  Barclay  Miller  sent  part  of  his  children. 
Upon  the  representation  of  the  teacher  that  the  school  was  already  too 
large,  the  trustees  directed  him  to  dismiss  Mr.  Miller's  children  from 
school. 

Whereupon  Mr.  Miller  came  with  his  children  and  a  part  of  his  fur- 
niture to  his  son's  house  in  No.  5,  leaving  his  wife  at  his  house  in  No. 
12.  His  son  went  to  the  farm  in  No.  12,  but  left  his  wife  at  the  house 
in  No.  5.  Mr.  Barclay  Miller  has,  since  this  arrangement,  sometimes 
lodged  at  his  house  in  No.  12,  and  his  son  has  also  occasionally  lodged 
at  the  house  in  No.  5.  Barclay  Miller  took  with  him  to  No.  5,  his 
horses  and  milch  cows,  but  had  stock  on  both  farms,  and  has  since  killed 
his  hogs  at  the  house  in  No.  12,  and  there  packed  the  pork. 

Under  this  statement  of  facts  Barclay  Miller  cannot  claim  to  bo  a 
resident  of  District  No.  5.     The  trustees  have   power  to  dismiss  bis 

rDlGEST.]  7 


50  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

children  from  the  school,  or  if  they  permit  them  to  attend,  they  are  not 
entitled  to  share  in  the  public  money  of  the  district,  nor  can  they  be 
lawfully  enumerated,  as  children  residing  in  the  district.     Mr.  Miller  is 
a  resident  of  No.  12,  and  his  children  must  be  there  enumerated. 
Per  Morgan,  January  11,  1819. 

Where  the  inhabitants  at  a  district  meeting  direct  the  trustees  to  do  an  act  which 
they  are  authorized  by  law  to  direct,  as  the  removal  of  a  school-house,  the 
trustees  may  levy  a  tax  to  defray  the  expense,  without  a  vote  of  the  district. 

The  inhabitants  of  District  No.  17,  town  of  Wilna,  voted  a  new  site 
for  the  school-house,  and  directed  the  trustees  to  move  the  house  by 
a  "  bee." 

The  trustees  made  a  "  bee,"  but  there  not  being  much  of  a  "  turn  out" 
on  the  part  of  the  inhabitants,  they  were  oidy  able  to  get  the  school- 
house  into  the  highway.  Foreseeing  the  difficulty  attending  the  removal 
by  such  means,  and  not  receiving  the  requisite  aid,  the  trustees  moved 
the  school-house  to  the  site  selected  at  an  expense  of  $25.00 

A  special  meeting  was  called  on  the  4th  December,  1847,  without 
stating  the  object  of  it  in  the  notices,  at  which  a  tax  was  voted  to  meet 
the  expenses  of  the  trustees.  Only  four  legal  voters  were  present  at  the 
meeting. 

The  vote  directing  the  trustees  to  move  the  house  by  a  "bee"  was 
void,  as  they  could  have  no  authority  over  voluntary  aid,  and  could  not 
depend  upon  it  as  a  means  of  moving  the  school-house. 

When  the  inhabitants  of  a  district  direct  the  trustees  to  perform  a 
work  where  expenses  are  to  bo  incurred,  the  trustees  are  authorized  to 
raise  the  amount  thereof,  by  tax,  without  a  vote  of  the  district.  In  this 
case  the  trustees  would  necessarily  incur  an  expense  in  moving  the 
school-house,  which  is  chargeable  to  the  district  and  can  be  collected  by 
tax  the  same  as  if  it  were  voted.  (School  Laws,  No.  134.)  And  although 
the  vote  of  December  4,  1847,  to  raise  the  tax  was  illegal  on  account 
of  the  want  of  proper  notice,  the  levying  of  the  tax  was  legal  on  the 
ground  that  the  trustees  possessed  the  requisite  power,  without  a  vote 
of  the  district  to  raise  the  tax. 

The  appeal  is  dismissed. 

Per  A.  G.  Johnson,  Dept.  Supt.,  August  3,  1848. 

In  the  alteration  or  formation  of  school  districts,  out  of  territory  lying  in  two  or 
more  towns,  the  order  making  the  same  must  show  that  the  town  superin- 
tendents of  the  respective  towns  united  in  making  the  order. 

It  appears  from  the  papers  transmitted  to  the  department  in  this  case 
by  the  county  superintendent,  that  the  order  for  the  transfer  of  Mr. 
Safford  from  Joint  District,  No.  6,  in  Essex  and  Westport,  to  District 
No.  8,  of  the  former  town,  was  made  by  the  town  superintendent  of 
Essex  alone,  without  the  presence  and  concurrence  of  the  superintend- 
ent.of  Westport. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  51 

It  is  true  that  it  is  alleged  by  the  superintendent  of  Essex,  in  his 
answer  to  the  appeal,  that  the  alteration  was  made  with  the  "  concur- 
rence of  the  town  superintendent  of  Westport,"  but  the  order,  a  copy 
of  which  is  appended  to  the  appeal,  purports  to  be  made  by  the  super- 
intendent of  Essex  alone,  and  no  reference  whatever  is  made  to  the 
superintendent  of  Westport,  and  by  the  uniform  decisions  of  the  depart- 
ment, no  alteration  of  a  district  can  be  legally  made,  except  by  the 
action  of  a  joint  board,  consisting  of  the  requisite  authority  of  the 
several  towns,  from  parts  of  which  such  joint  district  is  composed. 
Neither  the  previous  nor  subsequent  concurrence,  formally  or  informally, 
of  the  representatives  of  either  town  to  such  alteration,  can  supply  the 
defect  arising  from  their  absence  at  the  time  of  making  the  order. 
They  must  meet  and  constitute  a  board,  otherwise  the  proceedings  are 
void. 

This  objection   appearing  in   this   case  upon  the  papers,  must   be 
regarded  as  fatal  to  the  validity  of  the  order  appealed  from;  and  the 
decision  of  the  county  superintendent  must  be  reversed. 
Per  S.  Young,  August  6,  1844. 

When  a  trustee  is  absent  from  a  district,  so  as  to  be  unable  to  act  with  his  asso- 
ciates, the  town  superintendent,  on  the  application  of  the  other  trustees,  will 
appoint  a  successor. 

Some  time  in  the  month  of  September  last,  Mr.  Gilbert,  who  had 
been  elected  a  trustee  of  District  No.  9,  visited  the  western  part  of  the 
state,  in  company  with  his  wife,  whose  parents  resided  there,  for  the 
benefit  of  her  health.  Leaving  her,  he  returned,  harvested  his  crops, 
and  early  in  October  again  left,  with  the  avowed  intention  of  remaining 
until  the  ensuing  spring.  The  other  two  trustees  being  unable  to  agree 
in  the  management  of  the  affairs  of  the  district,  and  the  employment 
of  a  teacher  for  the  winter  term,  applied  to  the  town  superintendent  to 
fill  the  vacancy  which  they  supposed  to  exist  in  the  district,  in  order  to 
enable  them  to  organize  the  winter  school. 

For  all  practical  purposes,  it  is  evident  that  a  proper  case  for  the 
action  of  the  town  superintendent  was  presented  ;  Mr.  Gilbert  indeed 
may  not  have  lost  his  legal  rights  as  a  resident  of  the  district,  but  he 
had,  at  all  events,  ceased  to  be  an  inhabitant,  and  had  expressly  avowed 
his  intention  not  to  return  to  the  district  until  the  ensuing  spring. 

The  department  is  disposed  to  coincide  with  the  county  superinten- 
dent in  the  opinion  that  an  actual  vacancy  existed,  created,  if  not  by 
"  removal  from  the  district,"  in  the  legal  acceptation  of  the  term,  by 
a  virtual  "  refusal  to  serve,"  or  incapacity  to  act,  and  that  the  interpo- 
sition of  the  town  superintendent,  by  the  appointment  of  a  trustee  in 
his  place,  was  legal. 

Per  S.  Young,  December  26,  1846 


62  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Where  trustees  have  employed  a  teacher  for  a  certain  period,  and  before  the  expi- 
ration thereof,  they  agree  with  him  to  continue  for  a  month  longer,  the  inha- 
bitants sending  to  the  school  during  the  original  term  are  not  liable  for  any 
portion  of  the  teacher's  wages  for  the  additional  month,  unless  they  send  to 
the  school  during  that  time. 

In  such  case  the  trustees  should  make  out  separate  rate  bills. 

The  facts  in  this  case  are  substantially  as  follows  :  The  trustees  hired 
a  teacher  for  the  term  of  four  months  at  a  specified  compensation.  Sub- 
sequently and  prior  to  the  expiration  of  the  term,  they  contracted  with 
the  teacher  to  continue  in  the  school  for  an  additional  month  ;  contrary, 
however,  to  the  expressed  wishes  of  a  large  majority  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  district  and  patrons  of  the  school.  Of  twenty  individuals  who 
had  sent  during  the  term  of  four  months,  only  eight  continued  to  send 
during  the  additional  month. 

In  making  out  their  rate  bill,  the  trustees,  after  deducting  the  public 
money  applicable  to  the  term,  charged  the  aggregate  balance  due  the 
teacher  for  the  whole  five  months  upon  all  the  inhabitants  who  had  sent 
to  the  school  during  any  portion  of  that  time,  in  proportion  to  the 
number  of  days  and  the  number  of  children  sent.  The  appellants  being 
of  the  opinion  that  those  who  had  not  sent,  during  the  last  month  ought 
not  to  pay  any  portion  of  the  wages  of  the  teacher  accruing  in  that 
month,  and  that  two  separate  rate  bills  should  be  made  out,  the  one  for 
the  original  term  of  four  months  and  the  other  for  the  supplementary 
term,  brought  the  case  before  the  county  superintendent,  who  held  that 
one  rate  bill  only  was  necessary  for  the  whole  five  months ;  that  the 
second  contract  was  a  mere  extension  or  prolongation  of  the  first ;  and 
that  the  trustees  being  legally  competent  so  to  extend  or  modify  the 
original  contract  with  the  assent  of  the  teacher,  the  entire  term  must 
be  regarded  as  one  and  indivisible.  From  this  decision  an  appeal  has 
been  taken  to  this  department. 

In  the  opinion  of  the  present  superintendent,  the  view  thus  taken  of 
the  effect  of  the  agreement,  made  with  the  teacher  by  the  trustees,  is 
erroneous,  so  far  at  least  as  the  rights  of  the  inhabitants  interested  in 
the  rate  bill  are  concerned  ;  as  between  trustees  and  teacher  the  transac- 
tion may  perhaps  admit  of  the  construction  contended  for  by  the 
county  superintendent.  But  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  sending  to 
school,  had,  it  seems  to  me,  a  clear  right  to  regard  the  original  term 
for  which  the  teacher  was  hired,  as  closed  at  the  expiration  of  four 
months,  and  to  insist  upon  the  rate  bills  being  made  out  for  that  term, 
reserving  to  themselves  the  option  of  continuing  to  send  to  school  for 
the  additional  month  or  not.  They  signified  their  wishes  to  this  effect 
to  the  trustees,  prior  to  the  expiration  of  the  four  months.  If  it  is  in 
the  power  of  trustees  so  to  enlarge  or  prolong  a  contract  made  for  a 
specified  term,  to  extend  the  liability  of  the  inhabitants  sending  to 
school,  and  that  against  the  express  wishes  of  the  district,  where  is  the 
limitation  of  this  power?  The  contract  to  hire  for  the  additional 
month,  must,  as  between  the  parties  to  this  appeal,  be  regarded  as  a 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  53 

new  and  independent  contract,  and  the  trustees  are  hereby  directed  to 
make  out  their  rate  bill  accordingly. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  March  13,  1845. 

When  a  trustee  is  unable  to  discharge  his  duty  as  sucli  trustee,  by  reason  of 
imprisonment,  the  town  superintendent  may  appoint  his  successor  after  the 
expiration  of  thirty  days  from  the  time  of  such  imprisonment. 

The  facts  of  this  case  appear  to  be  as  follows  : 

Some  three  or  four  months  previous  to  the  annual  meeting  for  the 
choice  of  district  officers,  one  of  the  trustees  for  District  No.  2,  of  the 
town  of  Evans,  county  of  Erie,  was  arrested  on  execution,  and  commit- 
ted to  the  jail  limits  of  the  county,  where  he  has  since  been  and  still  is 
confined. 

At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  district,  a  motion  was  made  to  elect  a 
trustee  in  the  place  of  the  individual  thus  imprisoned,  but  the  majority, 
thinking  there  was  no  vacancy  to  be  filled,  refused  to  elect,  and  subse- 
quently the  town  superintendent  appointed  Chauncey  Stone,  a  trustee, 
in  the  place  of  Enos  Avery,  the  former  incumbent. 

An  appeal  was  taken  to  the  county  superintendent  of  Erie  county, 
who  reversed  the  action  of  the  town  superintendent,  and  annulled  the 
appointment. 

Section  71,  of  Common  School  Laws,  published  in  1844,  authorizes 
the  town  superintendent  to  appoint  any  person  residing  in  the  district, 
to  supply  any  vacancy  occasioned  by  the  death  of  the  incumbent, 
refusal  to  serve,  removal  out  of  the  district  or  incapacity  of  any  officer, 
when  the  vacancy  shall  not  have  been  filled  by  a  district  meeting 
within  one  month  after  the  same  shall  occur ;  and  the  only  question 
now  presented  is,  had  either  of  these  contingencies  happened  one  month 
previous  to  the  time  the  appointment  was  made  ? 

It  would  not,  I  think,  do  to  hold  that  no  other  than  a  legal  incapa- 
city should  operate  to  create  a  vacancy,  nor  will  it  do  to  say  that  a 
refusal  to  serve  may  not  be  as  strongly  inferred  from  the  acts  of  an 
incumbent  as  by  a  direct  assertion  that  he  will  not  discbarge  the  duties 
of  his  office. 

Mr.  Avery,  no  doubt,  is  an  inhabitant  of  the  district  in  every  legal 
sense,  yet  in  point  of  fact  he  is  actually  incapacitated  from  the  discharge 
of  his  duties  as  trustee,  by  reason  of  his  confinement  upon  the  jail 
limits  out  of  his  town  and  out  of  the  boundaries  of  his  district. 

The  decision  of  the  county  superintendent  is  therefore  reversed,  and 
that  of  the  town  superintendent  affirmed. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  October  8,  1846. 


54  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Taxation  of  a  person  having  the  naked  possession  of  land  without  color  of  title. 
A  previous  case  commented  on  and  explained. 

On  the  first  day  of  April  last,  Mr.  Davis  executed  and  delivered  a  deed 
of  his  farm  to  Mr.  Frost,  the  owner  of  the  adjoining  land,  receiving  from 
him  a  payment  of  $900,  in  cash  and  the  promissory  notes  of  third  per- 
sons, and  a  mortgage  for  the  residue  of  the  purchase  money.  On  the 
12th  day  of  April,  the  trustees  made  out  a  tax  list,  and,  as  Mr.  Davis 
still  continued  in  possession  of  the  farm  he  had  sold,  assessed  him  for 
the  value  thereof.  Upon  his  objecting,  and  stating  to  the  trustees  that 
he  was  in  possession  only  at  sufferance,  while  waiting  for  the  opening 
of  lake  navigation  to  transport  his  family  and  effects  to  Wisconsin,  the 
trustees  proposed  to  assess  him  for  the  price  of  the  farm  as  personal 
property.  To  this  he  replied  that  he  had  already  made  a  contract  for 
the  purchase  of  a  farm  in  Wisconsin,  and  bound  himself  to  pay  a  larger 
sum  than  that  for  which  he  had  sold  his  farm,  and  offered  to  make  an 
affidavit  that  his  debts  exceeded  the  value  of  his  personal  property. 
The  trustees  being  satisfied  of  the  truth  of  his  statement,  but  supposing 
themselves  bound  to  assess  him  for  the  farm  by  a  decision  of  the  super- 
intendent (for  which  see  pp.  39,  40,  ante),  united  with  Mr.  Davis  in 
submitting  the  facts  for  a  decision. 

The  trustees  have  been  misled  by  overlooking  the  distinction  between 
the  present  case  and  that  to  which  they  refer.  In  the  former  case,  Mr. 
Hoyt  reserved  the  right  of  possession  for  a  definite  period,  and  was  the 
actual  owner,  with  all  the  responsibilities  of  ownership,  until  that  period 
arrived.  In  this  case,  Mr.  Davis,  though  actually  in  possession,  is  with- 
out any  claim  of  title  to  possession  for  an  hour.  Mr.  Frost  is  the  admit- 
ted owner,  though  he  has  not  exercised  his  extreme  right  by  inhospita- 
bly turning  his  neighbor  out  of  doors.  As  such  owner  he  is  liable  to  be 
taxed  for  the  real  estate  purchased. 

The  facts  conceded  in  respect  to  the  indebtedness  of  Mr.  Davis  are  a 
conclusive  answer  to  any  supposed  obligation  on  the  part  of  the  trustees 
to  assess  him  for  personal  estate,  though  the  fact  that  he  is  about  to 
remove,  and  can  receive  no  benefit  from  the  tax,  has  no  legal  import- 
ance in  the  question. 

Per  A.  G.  Johnson,  Dep.  Supt.,  May,  1849. 

A  tax  may  be  voted,  levied  and  collected  in  a  school  district  to  purchase  a  site 
and  school-house,  but  the  money  cannot  be  applied  until  a  valid  title  is 
obtained. 

The  appellants  in  this  case  seek  to  set  aside  the  proceedings  of  a 
special  meeting  held  in  District  No.  9,  on  the  29th  of  November  last, 
at  which  resolutions  were  adopted  for  the  purchase  of  a  new  site  and 
house,  upon  the  ground  that  a  valid  legal  title  cannot  be  obtained  to 
such  site  and  house.  They  allege  that  the  house  was  built  by  private 
subscription,  and  is  now  owned  by  various  persons  in  and  out  of  the 
district,  some  of  whom  will  not  consent  to  transfer  their  right  to  the 
district.  This  allegation,  vague  and  general  as  it  is,  is  explicitly  met 
and  denied  by  the  trustees,  who  assert  that  they  can  procure  a  good 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  55 

title.  This  question  of  title,  however,  is  one  which  cannot  come  up  at 
this  stage  of  the  proceedings.  The  tax  voted  may  legally  be  levied  and 
collected,  but  cannot  be  applied  until  a  valid  legal  title  is  obtained. 

From  the  proofs  before  him,  the  superintendent   entertains   no  doubt 
of  the  sufficiency  of  the  title,  and  so  much  of  the  appeal   as  relates  to 
this  portion  of  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  is  therefore  dismissed. 
Per  Morgan,  January  18,  1851. 

When  a  tax  list  has  been  made  out,  but  not  delivered  to  the  collector,  it  is  no 
objection  to  the  trustees  calling  another  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  to 
reconsider  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  at  which  the  tax  was  voted,  if 
requested  by  a  respectable  number  of  the  inhabitants. 

In  this  case,  the  appellants  seek  to  set  aside  the  proceedings  of  a 
special  meeting,  held  on  the  20th  of  February  last,  at  which  a  previous 
vote  of  the  district  relative  to  the  length  of  time  during  which  a  school 
should  be  taught,  was  reconsidered,  and  a  less  period  adopted.  Under  the 
preceding  vote,  the  tax  list  had  been  made  out  by  the  trustees,  but  the 
warrant  had  not  been  delivered  to  the  collector.  The  superintendent 
is  of  opinion,  that  under  such  circumstances  it  was  legally  competent  to 
the  inhabitants  to  reconsider  the  previous  vote. 

Per  Morgan,  April  23,  1850. 

Trustees  have  no  power  to  set  aside  or  invalidate  the  proceedings  of  a  district 

meeting  upon  the  assumption  that  they  were  illegal. 
Though  illegal  votes  are  cast  at  such  meeting  the  trustees  cannot  set  aside  the 

proceedings.     The  remedy  is  by  appeal. 

On  the  1st  day  of  October  last,  at  an  adjourned  meeting  of  the  tax- 
able inhabitants  of  District  No.  2,  in  Belmont,  held  for  the  purpose  of 
locating  a  site  for  the  school-house,  a  site  was  fixed  on  the  land  of  Wink- 
ley  and  Smith,  and  the  sum  of  $200.00  voted  to  build  a  school-house 
thereon.  A  confirmation  and  renewal  of  the  vote  fixing  the  site  was 
had  on  the  30th  of  November  last,  at  a  special  meeting  of  the  district, 
more  fully  attended  by  the  inhabitants,  but  no  tax  was  voted  for  build- 
ing the  school-house.  On  the  14th  of  December  a  vote  was  adopted 
locating  the  site  on  lands  of  E.  Stanton,  Jr.,  and  the  sum  of  $200.00 
directed  to  be  raised  for  building.  On  the  11th  of  January  last,  the  site 
was  ao-ain  changed  to  the  lands  of  Winkley  and  Smith,  and  the  same 
amount  voted  to  be  raised  for  building  the  school-house  thereon.  Not- 
withstanding this  last  and  final  vote  of  the  district,  and  in  the  absence 
of  any  appeal  from  the  proceedings,  the  trustees  have  determined  to 
apply  the  tax  voted  to  build  a  house  on  Mr.  Stanton's  land,  on  the  alle- 
gation that  an  illegal  vote  was  received  at  the  last  meeting  by  means  of 
which  the  vote  was  invalidated  and  the  preceding  vote  remained  in  force, 
and  from  this  determination  of  the  trustees  the  present  appeal  is  taken. 

If  any  of  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  held  on  the  11th  of  Janu- 
ary were  illegal  the  appropriate  remedy  of  the  trustees  or  of  any  persons 
atwrieved  was  by  appeal  to  this  department.     It  is  not  within  their 


56  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

power  to  set  aside  or  invalidate  those  proceedings  on  their  mere  assump- 
tion of  such  illegality.  The  money  directed  to  be  raised  at  that  meet- 
ing, in  the  absence  of  any  appeal  within  the  time  and  in  the  mode 
prescribed  by  law,  must  be  applied  according  to  the  vote  then  taken, 
and  any  other  application  of  it  will  be  illegal  and  invalid  and  will  sub- 
ject the  trustees  to  personal  responsibility  to  the  district  for  the  amount 
so  expended,  and  to  the  forfeitures  and  penalties  prescribed  by  law. 

The  allegation,  moreover,  of  the  trustees  that  an  illegal  vote  was  cast 
at  the  meeting  referred  to  by  which  the  result  was  changed,  is  wholly 
unsupported  by  the  facts,  as  they  appear  from  the  papers. 

The  proceedings  of  the  meeting  of  the  11th  of  January,  are  therefore 
hereby  confirmed  and  the  trustees  directed  to  apply  the  tax  voted 
accordingly. 

Per  Morgan,  February  11,  1850. 

The  town  superintendent  of  the  town  in  which  the  school-house  of  a  joint  district 
is  located,  must  grant  the  certificate  of  qualification  to  the  teacher  who 
teaches  therein. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  action  of  the  trustees  of  Joint  District 
No.  9,  Preble  and  Scott,  Cortland  county,  in  hiring  Albert  R.  Ingraham 
as  a  teacher  in  said  district. 

The  facts  in  this  case  show  that  the  said  Ingraham  applied  to  Abra- 
ham Woodard,  town  superintendent  of  Preble,  in  which  town  the 
school-house  is  situated,  for  a  license  to  teach,  and  was  rejected  for 
want  of  the  requisite  qualifications.  He  afterwards  applied  to  the 
superintendent  of  the  town  of  Scott,  and  from  him  obtained  a  certificate 
to  teach. 

This  was  illegal.  The  town  superintendent  of  the  town  of  Preble,  in 
which  the  school-house  was  located,  could  alone  grant  the  certificate. 

Per  Morgan,  January,  1818. 

Trustees  should  not  admit  non-resident  children  into  their  school  contrary  to  the 
instructions  of  the  inhabitants  in  district  meeting  assembled. 

Quaere:  Does  not  ty  1,  chap.  151,  Laws  of  1851,  vest  an  exclusive  discretion  in 
the  trustees  1 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  decision  of  the  county  superintendent  of 
common  schools,  sustaining  the  decision  of  the  trustees  in  admitting 
children  of  non-resident  parents  into  their  district  school,  contrary  to 
the  instructions  of  the  inhabitants  of  said  district  at  their  annual 
meeting. 

As  a  general  principle  it  is  the  duty  of  trustees  to  carry  into  effect 
the  instructions  of  the  district  in  reference  to  those  matters  over  which 
they  are  allowed  by  law  to  exercise  a  discretionary  control.  Had  the 
vote  of  the  inhabitants  in  this  case  been  a  full  and  fair  expression  of  the 
wishes  of  the  district  in  reference  to  the  admission  of  non-resident 
children,  the  superintendent  would  have  deemed  it  his  duty  to  carry 
the   resolution  into  effect,    however  ill-judged    such  a    vote   rhio'ht   1>j 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  57 

regarded  under  the  circumstances  of  the  case  ;  but  it  is  evident  from  the 
testimony  on  the  part  of  the  respondents,  that  this  vote  was  improperly 
and  unfairly  obtained — that  it  does  not  represent  the  wishes  or  views  of 
a  majority  of  the  inhabitants,  but  on  the  other  hand,  that  a  decided 
preponderance  against  such  a  proposition  has  been  distinctly  manifested 
on  the  part  of  those  inhabitants  of  the  district  most  interested  in  sus_ 
taining  the  school.  It  does  not  appear  that  the  admission  of  thcsc 
children  in  any  respect  injures  the  school  or  embarrasses  its  operations  . 
on  the  contrary,  the  trustees  are  enabled  by  such  accession  to  sustain' 
teachers  of  a  higher  order  of  qualification,  than  would  otherwise  be  in 
their  power.  However,  the  public  money  of  the  district  into  which 
these  children  are  admitted,  cannot  be  appropriated  in  diminution  of  the 
charge  for  their  tuition. 

Per  Young,  August,  1843. 

The  Department  of  Fublic  Instruction,  in  the  formation  and  alteration 
of  school  districts,  acts  upon  one  uniform  rule,  never  (except  in  certain 
special  cases  and  for  the  most  urgent  reasons)  to  permit  new  districts  to 
be  formed  with  a  less  number  of  children  between  the  ages  of  five  and 
sixteen  years,  than  from  thirty-five  to  forty,  and  never  to  countenance 
or  sanction  changes  or  alterations  of  districts  which  shall  reduce  the 
number  of  school  children  in  a  district  below  what  has  been  found  from 
practical  experience,  would  afford  an  average  attendance  sufficient  to 
give  full  employment  to  a  competent  teacher. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  June  30,  1847. 

The  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  will  reverse  an  order  of  a  town  super- 
intendent annexing  one  district  to  another,  where  the  inhabitants  of  either 
are  opposed  to  the  union,  and  have  sufficient  means  for  the  support  of  a 
school,  it  being  an  abuse  of  his  discretion. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  an  order  of  the  county  superintendent  of 
Greene  county,  who  confirmed  the  proceedings  of  a  town  superintendent 
of  the  28th  June  last,  uniting  Districts  No.  2  and  19,  of  the  town  of 
Catskill.  The  county  superintendent  sustained  the  order  of  the  town 
superintendent  and  dismissed  the  appeal.  From  this  decision  this  appeal 
is  brought. 

From  a  careful  examination  of  the  papers  in  the  case,  the  superinten- 
dent is  compelled  to  differ  in  opinion  with  the  county  superintendent 
and  town  board,  by  whose  order  the  union  of  Districts  No.  2  and  19 
has  been  effected.  It  appears  that  sufficient  importance  has  not  been 
given  to  the  facts  that  the  inhabitants  of  District  No.  2  almost  unani- 
mously remonstrated  against  the  proposed  union  ;  that  they  have  every 
necessary  facility  within  themselves,  as  at  present  organized,  to  sustain 
a  good  school ;  that  for  several  years  past  they  have  done  so,  and  that 
they  do  not  need  any  accession  of  territory,  taxable  property  or  inhabi- 
tants ;  that  district  No.  19,  so  far  as  wealth  and  children  of  the  proper 
age  to  attend  school  are  concerned,  is  far  more  able  to  keep  up  an  efficient 
organization  than  District  No.  2  ;  and  that  the  failure  of  the  inhabitants 

rDlGEST.]  8 


58  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

in  District  19,  under  such  circumstances,  even  to  procure  a  school 
house,  so  far  from  entitling  them  to  special  consideration,  ought  upon 
every  principle,  to  operate  adversely  to  their  claim.  Doubtless  the 
union  of  two  districts  contiguously  situated,  and  together  occupying  a 
small  area,  would  prove  mutually  advantageous,  provided  such  union 
could  be  effected  by  the  general  consent  and  cooperation  of  the  inhabi- 
tants interested.  But  in  the  absence  of  such  consent,  and  especially  in 
the  face  of  a  determined  and  unanimous  opposition,  to  such  an  arrange- 
ment on  the  part  of  one  of  the  districts  proposed  to  be  united,  a  con- 
solidation could,  in  the  judgment  of  the  department,  only  prove  detri- 
mental to  the  cause  of  education,  and  subversive  of  the  best  interests  of 
all  concerned.  No  good  reason  can  be  perceived  why  the  inhabitants 
of  District  No.  19  should  not  promptly  avail  themselves  of  the  ample 
means  at  their  command,  to  organize  and  efficiently  sustain  a  school  of 
the  highest  grade  of  excellence,  instead  of  permitting  their  territory  to 
be  parcelled  out  into  private  and  select  schools.  Tliey  do  not  need  the 
aid  of  District  No.  2,  in  order  to  the  accomplishment  of  this  object. 
The  decision  of  the  county  superintendent  is  hereby  reversed. 
Per  Young,  August,  1843. 

It  is  the  settled  policy  of  the  Department  of  Public  Instruction,  to  favor  the  con- 
solidation of  weak  and  inefficient  districts. 

The  town  superintendent  of  Independence,  Allegany  county,  had 
consolidated  two  weak  and  inefficient  districts,  Nos.  7  and  ML.  Upon 
an  appeal  to  the  county  superintendent,  he  reversed  the  order  of  the 
town  superintendent,  upon  the  sole  ground  that  it  was,  apparently,  the 
only  means  of  putting  an  end  to  the  quarrels  and  dissensions  that  had 
unhappily  arisen  in  the  consolidated  district.  The  county  superinten- 
dent at  the  same  time  admitted  that  the  organization,  as  made  by  the 
town  superintendent,  was  "  the  most  judicious  one  that  could  be  entered 
into  under  existing  circumstances,"  and  that  although  not  perfect,  "  it  was 
the  best  that  could  be  made  until  the  population  of  the  neighborhood 
becomes  more  dense." 

The  State  Superintendent  reversed  the  decision  of  the  county  super- 
intendent, and  confirmed  the  order  of  the  town  superintendent,  strongly 
reprehending  the  bad  policy  of  reestablishing  two  weak  and  inefficient 
districts,  obviously  incapable  of  maintaining  an  adequate  organization. 
Per  Young,  December  20,  1844. 

The  superintendent  has  power  to  remove  a  trustee  from  office,  for  corruption  or 
intentional  neglect  of  official  duties,  or  for  willful  disobedience  of  the  orders 
of  the  department. 

On  the  20th  of  December  last,  the  trustees  in  District  No.  6,  in  the 
town  of  Somers,  were  directed  and  required  by  an  order  of  this  depart- 
ment, within  ten  days  from  the  service  upon  them  of  snch  order, 
to  execute  a  certain  tax  list  and  warrant,  made  out  by  Jacob  G. 
Purdy,  one  of  the  trustees,  for  the  collection  of  the  amount  voted  at  a 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  59 

special  meeting  held  in  said  district  on  the  '27th  of  September  last,  for 
building  a  school-house  and  out  buildings,  and  fencing  the  site,  deduct- 
ing therefrom  the  sum  of  $8.50,  the  balance  remaining  in  the  hands  of 
said  trustees,  on  the  sale  of  the  house  belonging  to  said  district. 

A  copy  of  this  order  was  served  upon  the  two  trustees  who  refused 
to  sign  the  tax  list  and  warrant  on  the  25th  of  December.  On  the  2d 
day  of  January,  the  trustees  met  by  previous  appointment.  The  tax 
list  was  produced,  and  the  $8.50  above  named  deducted  therefrom, 
when  the  two  trustees  for  the  first  time  interposed  an  objection,  that  a 
certain  piece  of  land  was  included  in  the  tax  list  which  was  not  taxable 
in  the  district,  and  insisted  upon  its  deduction,  although  no  legal  claim 
to  that  effect  had  been  made  by  the  owner  or  occupant  of  the  land 
within  the  time  prescribed  by  law.  On  the  ensuing  day,  the  trustees 
had  another  meeting,  but  Carpenter  and  Ferris  still  declined,  on  various 
pretenses,  signing  the  tax  list,  and  have,  up  to  the  present  period, 
refused  or  neglected  to  carry  into  effect  the  order  of  the  department. 

This  refusal  is  sought  to  be  justified  by  them  upon  several  grounds, 
among  which  the  most  important  are  that  Purdy  refused  to  make  the 
necessary  correction  of  the  tax  list,  and  also  to  account  to  his  colleagues 
for  certain  pecuniary  transactions  of  the  district.  Neither  of  these 
excuses  can  be  received.  If  there  were  any  error  in  the  tax  list,  as  pre- 
sented to  them  for  signature,  it  was  clearly  within  their  power  as  the 
majority  of  the  trustees,  to  have  made  the  requisite  correction  in  the 
mode  prescribed  by  law.  Whatever  may  have  been  the  conduct  of  Mr. 
Purdy,  it  constituted  no  sufficient  grounds  for  a  refusal  on  their  part  to 
comply  with  an  express  order  of  this  department.  They  have  manifested 
a  determination  to  resist  the  explicit  direction  of  the  superintendent  in 
the  premises,  and  to  evade  the  performance  of  their  duties  as  trustees. 
In  pursuance,  therefore,  of  the  authority  vested  in  me  by  chap.  382,  §  1 5  of 
the  Laws  of  1849,  I  do  hereby  remove  the  said  Carpenter  and  Ferris 
from  office  as  trustees  of  District  No.  6  in  the  town  of  Somers. 

Per  Morgan,  January  28,  1851. 

When  the  inhabitants  of  a  school  district  at  their  annual  meeting,  elect  trustees, 
their  proceedings  will  be  held  legal,  although,  such  election  is  made  by  a 
small  minority  of  the  inhabitants. 

This  is  in  substance  an  appeal  from  the  refusal  of  the  trustees  of 
District  No.  11,  to  grant  an  order  upon  the  town  superintendent  for  a 
portion  of  the  public  money  belonging  to  the  district,  applicable  to  the 
payment  of  teachers'  wages  in  favor  of  a  duly  qualified  teacher  employed 
by  the  appellants  while  acting  as  trustees  under  color  of  a  legal  election 
by  the  district,  and  who  taught  in  the  school-house  of  the  district.  The 
annual  meeting  at  which  both  sets  of  trustees  were  chosen  was  notified 
to  be  held  on  the  2d  of  October,  1843,  at  6  o'clock,  P.  M.,  at  which  hour 
five  inhabitants  only  were  in  attendance.  They,  however,  organized  and 
elected  district  officers,  in  accordance  with  law.  After  their  adjournment, 
but  before  leaving  the  house,  the  residue  of  the  inhabitants  came  in  and 
insisted  upon  a  re-organization  which  was  accordingly  had,  without  the 


60  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

participation,  however,  of  tire  inhabitants  first  assembled,  and  the  appel- 
lants were  elected  trustees.  The  county  superintendent  having  been 
consulted,  gave  his  opinion  that  the  latter  election  was  legal  and  valid; 
and  in  accordance  with  this  opinion  the  appellants  proceeded  to  employ 
a  teacher  and  take  upon  themselves  the  discharge  of  their  official  duties 
without  opposition.  The  persons  first  elected,  however,  without  ques- 
tioning or  controverting  the  right  of  the  appellants  to  the  use  of  the 
district  school-house  and  the  control  of  the  district  property  generally, 
employed  a  teacher  who  taught  under  their  direction  and  in  accordance 
with  a  vote  of  the  inhabitants  first  assembled,  in  a  private  house,  in  a 
part  of  the  district  remote  from  the  school-house.  After  the  termina- 
tion of  both  schools  the  question  of  the  legality  of  the  election  of  the 
officiating  trustees  was  submitted  to  this  department,  and  the  persons 
first  elected  declared  to  be  the  only  legal  trustees.  They  accordingly 
took  possession  of  the  books,  papers  and  other  property  of  the  district, 
gave  an  order  for  a  portion  of  the  public  money  in  the  hands  of  the 
town  superintendent  in  favor  of  the  teacher  employed  by  them,  and 
who  was  duly  qualified,  and  refused  to  recognize  the  teacher  employed 
by  the  appellants.  From  this  refusal  to  recognize  the  teacher  employed 
by  the  appellants,  the  present  appeal  was  brought. 

The  county  superintendent,  conceiving  himself  bound  by  the  prior 
decision  of  the  department  declaring  the  first  election  valid,  felt  ]t  his 
duty  to  dismiss  the  appeal  and  refer  the  rights  of  the  parties  to  the 
department. 

Although  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  validity  and  legality  of  the 
first  election,  yet  the  official  acts  of  the  persons  subsequently  chosen, 
under  color  of  a  legal  election,  and  who  took  upon  themselves  the  office 
of  trustees,  will  be  recognized  and  protected  for  all  practical  purposes  as 
trustees,  until  the  decision  of  the  department  declaring  their  election 
illegal,  was  obtained.  Their  employment  of  a  teacher  prior  to  such  a 
decision,  was  therefore  an  official  act,  and  inasmuch  as  the  teacher 
contemporaneously  employed  by  the  legal  trustees  has  been  paid,  and 
there  still  remains  a  balance  of  public  money  applicable  to  the  payment 
of  teachers'  wages  in  the  hands  of  the  town  superintendent,  it  is  the 
duty  of  the  trustees,  and  they  are  hereby  directed  to  draw  an  order  for 
such  balance  on  the  town  superintendent,  in  favor  of  the  teacher  so 
employed  by  the  appellants,  while  acting  as  trustees  under  claim  of  a 
legal  election,  and  to  make  out  a  rate  bill  and  warrant  in  the  mode 
prescribed  by  law  for  the  residue  of  his  wages,  against  the  inhabitants 
who  sent  to  school.  By  this  disposition  of  the  case,  it  is  conceived 
substantial  justice  will  be  done  to  all  parties,  and  the  rights  of  none 
infringed.  It  is  the  misfortune  of  the  appellants  that  they  were  not 
more  punctual  in  their  attendance  upon  the  annual  meeting  of  the 
district. 

Per  S.  Young,  October  7,  1844. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  61 

The  illegality  or  irregularity  of  the  election  of  trustees,  is  no  excuse  for  a  town 
superintendent  for  refusing  to  pay  over  the  public  money,  upon  the  order  of 
such  trustees.  He  must  be  governed  by  the  report  of  these  officers,  made 
in  conformity  to  law. 

The  town  superintendent  of  the  town  of  Spencer,  Tioga  county, 
declined  to  pay  over,  on  the  order  of  the  trustees  of  District  3,  in  said 
town,  in  favor  of  a  duly  qualified  teacher,  a  portion  of  the  school 
moneys  apportioned  to  said  district,  and  from  this  act  the  trustees 
appealed  to  the  county  superintendent,  who  sustained  the  appeal,  and 
ordered  the  town  superintendent  to  pay  the  money  over,  for  the  pur- 
poses and  in  the  manner  prescribed  by  law.  Town  superintendents 
will  not  be  permitted  to  inquire,  as  in  this  case,  on  being  presented 
with  a  written  order,  signed  by  the  trustees  of  a  district,  into  the 
validity  of  the  appointment  or  election  of  the  persons  claiming  to  act, 
and  who  are  acting  as  such  officers.  Such  an  order,  duly  receipted  by 
the  person  in  whose  favor  it  may  have  been  drawn,  would  be  a  perfect 
protection  to  him.  It  is  not  pretended  that  this  money  is  withheld  for 
any  defect  in  the  last  annual  report,  or  that  schools  have  not  been 
taught  in  conformity  with  the  requirements  of  law.  As  a  general 
principle,  collateral  matters  cannot  be  drawn  in  question,  involving 
judicial  cognizance,  by  any  officer,  when  called  upon  to  discharge  a 
mere  ministerial  duty.  And  the  town  superintendent  in  this  case 
assumes  to  decide  who  are  not  the  trustees  of  the  district,  a  matter 
entirely  beyond  his  jurisdiction.  The  decision  of  the  county  superin- 
tendent, therefore,  ordering  him  to  pay  over  the  money  to  the  trus- 
tees as  aforesaid,  was  correct,  and  is  hereby  affirmed. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  January  29,  1846. 

Neither  the  Department  of  Public  Instruction,  nor  the  moderator  of 
a  school  district  meeting,  has  any  right,  under  the  statute,  to  prohibit 
any  male  person  who  makes  the  declaration  required  by  law,  from 
voting ;  but  it  will  be  the  duty  of  this  department  to-  correct  and  set 
aside  all  proceedings  consummated  or  carried  by  votes  clearly  illegal, 
the  result  depending  upon  them.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  person  acting  as 
chairman  or  moderator  of  a  district  meeting,  to  permit  any  person 
challenged  to  make  the  declaration  required  by  statute,  and  any  refusal 
to  perform  this  duty,  will  be  good  ground  for  setting  aside  the  proceed- 
ings of  a  school  district  meeting. 

Ter  N.  S.  Benton,  July  12,  1847. 

A  stove  and  pipe  are  necessary  appendages  to  a  school-house,  and  proper  objects 
for  the  levying  of  a  district  tax. 

At  a  district  school  meeting,  held  in  the  town  of  Rodman,  on  the 
20th  day  of  November  last,  a  vote  was  taken  and  a  resolution  passed 
to  levy  a  tax  upon  a  district  to  purchase  a  stove  and  pipe  for  the  use  of 
the  school-house  in  the  district. 


C2  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

The  appellants  claim  that  the  district  has  no  authority  to  levy  a  tax 
for  such  a  purpose.  In  the  opinion  of  the  superintendent  a  stove  and 
pipe  are  necessary  appendages  to  a  school-house  and  legitimate  objects 
for  the  levy  of  a  district  tax.  The  proceedings  of  the  meeting  in  voting 
the  tax  aforesaid  are  hereby  affirmed. 

Per  N.  S.  Benton,  December  31,  1847 

A  district  may  purchase  a  site  by  a  majority  vote.  It  is  different  from  changing 
a  site. 

This  is  a  case  in  relation  to  the  proceedings  of  a  school  district  meet- 
ing in  the  town  of  Royalton.  The  district,  it  seems,  has  never  been 
the  legal  owner  of  a  site;  it  undoubtedly  has  a  right  to  procure 
one  by  a  majority  of  the  votes  at  a  district  meeting,  and  without  the 
formalities  required  in  case  of  a  change  of  site. 

I  see  no  objection  to  the  mode  adopted  by  the  district  in  the  purchase 
of  the  land.  A  deed  should,  however,  be  obtained  by  the  district,  pre- 
vious to  the  expenditure  of  any  money  on  the  house,  so  that  the  title 
may  be  secure. 

Per  Dix,  November  5,  1838. 

Persons  who  are  by  their  profession  dedicated  to  the  service  of  God  and  the  euro 
of  souls,  and  having  a  license  to  preach,  or  who  have  complied  with  the  form 
and  mode  of  ordination,  are  ministers  of  the  gospel  within  the  law. 

This  is  a  case  arising  in  a  school  district  in  Philadelphia,  Jefferson 
county,  where  the  trustees  doubted  the  right  of  a  person  claiming  to  be 
a  clergyman,  to  be  exempt  from  taxation. 

The  intention  of  the  law  relating  to  the  taxation  of  property  belong- 
ing to  ministers  of  the  gospel,  must  be  considered  as  applicable  only  to 
those  who  are  by  their  profession  dedicated  to  the  service  of  God  and 
the  cure  of  souls.  In  a  church  where  a  license  to  preach  is  required, 
or  where  a  form  of  ordination  is  necessary  the  license  should  be  obtained 
or  the  form  complied  with  in  order  to  entitle  an  individual  to  exemption 
under  the  law.  I  am  of  opinion  that  a  license  limited  in  point  of  time, 
is  sufficient  to  entitle  the  individual  holding  it,  to  an  exemption  for  the 
time  during  which  it  continues. 

Per  Dix,  June  11,  1838. 

Town  superintendents  can  pay  over  public  money  only  upon  the 
written  order  of  the  trustees  or  a  majority  of  them,  to  the  teacher  enti- 
tled to  receive  the  same. 

Per  Morgan,  May  29,  1851. 

The  State  Superintendent  will,  on  proper  application,  remove  a  trustee  for 
unwarrantable  neglect  of  official  duty. 

Elisha  Bedell,  one  of  the  trustees  of  school  District  No.  1,  in  the  town 
of  Hempstead,  is  charged  with  a  willful  disturbance  and  interruption  of 
the  school  taught  by  Mary  Augusta  Brown,  in  said  district.     Mr.  Van 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  63 

Cott,  another  of  the  trustees,  is  charged  with  a  refusal  to  unite  with 
one  of  his  colleagues  in  prosecuting  for  such  offense,  in  accordance  with 
the  statute. 

It  is  in  evidence  that  Mr.  Bedell  went  to  the  school  room,  and  in  the 
presence  of  the  scholars  used  angry  and  abusive  language  to  the  teacher, 
openly  countermanded  her  orders  in  conducting  the  school,  and  caused 
the  school  to  be  thrown  into  disorder,  and  that  both  teacher  and  pupils 
were  much  frightened  by  his  language  and  threatening  manner,  and 
for  some  time  after  she  was  unable  to  proceed  with  the  school. 

The  evidence  is  confirmed  by  the  report  of  a  committee  of  ten 
appointed  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  district,  at  the  annual  meeting  to 
visit  and  examine  the  school,  who,  in  concluding  their  statement, 
observe  that  they  "  were  compelled  to  the  opinion  that  Mr.  Bedell  has 
thereby  disqualified  himself  for  the  office  of  trustee,  and  that  it  is 
evidently  for  the  welfare  of  the  school  that  he  should  forthwith  resign 
his  office." 

This  array  of  evidence  is  met  only  by  a  general  and  unsatisfactory 
denial  by  Mr.  Bedell. 

There  can  be  no  doubt,  in  the  opinion  of  the  superintendent,  from 
ovidence,  that  Mr.  Bedell  has  been  guilty  of  a  gross  and  unjustifiable 
violation  of  law  and  neglect  of  official  duty.  The  same  conduct  in  an 
individual  not  officially  connected  with  the  school,  would  unquestionably 
have  incurred  the  penalty  prescribed  by  law  ;  and  it  certainly  does  not 
mitigate  the  offense  or  change  its  nature,  that  it  was  committed  by  an 
officer  specially  charged  with  the  preservation  of  quiet  and  order  in  the 
school,  and  with  the  protection  and  guardianship  of  its  interests. 

The  act  of  1845,  to  prevent  disturbances  in  schools,  above  referred 
to,  makes  it  the  special  duty  of  the  trustees  of  any  school  district  in 
which  any  such  offense  shall  be  committed,  to  prosecute  such  offender, 
before  any  officer  having  cognizance  of  such  offense.  Mr.  Van  Cott, 
one  of  the  two  remaining  trustees,  having  been  called  upon  for  the  per- 
formance of  this  duty,  positively  refused  to  comply  with  said  request, 
and  still  refuses  so  to  do.  This  is  clearly  an  unwarrantable  neglect  of 
official  duty,  for  which  no  defense  is  interposed ;  and  the  said  Elisha 
Bedell  and  Nicholas  Van  Cott  are  hereby  removed  from  office  as  trus- 
tees of  said  district. 

Per  Morgan,  July,  1851. 

Notice  of  the  object  of  an  annual  meeting  13  not  required  by  law.  Every  inhabi- 
tant is  presumed  to  know  that  any  business  affecting  the  interest  of  the 
district  may  be  transacted  without  special  notice  thereof. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  the  annual  meeting  of  a 
district  held  October  7,  1851. 

At  an  adjourned  annual  meeting,  held  in  the  district  April  7th,  1851, 
a  resolution  was  passed  to  change  the  site  of  the  school-house,  and  the 
necessary  taxes  were  voted  to  purchase  the  site  and  to  move  the  school- 
house.  The  proceedings  of  this  meeting  are  presumed  to  have  been 
legal. 


64  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

On  the  7th  of  October,  1851,  the  annual  meeting  was  held.  The 
customary  notices  for  an  annual  meeting  were  posted  in  the  district  hut 
no  particular  business  was  specified  except  that  officers  would  be  elected. 

At  this  meeting  a  resolution  was  passed  reconsidering  and  rescinding 
the  proceedings  of  April  7th,  1851,  so  fai  as  related  to  the  change  of 
site  for  the  school-house  and  the  raising  of  taxes  to  defray  the  expenses 
of  the  same. 

It  is  alleged  that  special  notice  should  have  been  given  of  the  inten- 
tion to  reconsider  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  of  April  7th  to  make 
the  proceedings  binding. 

This  department  has  always  maintained  the  rule,  and  the  law  pre- 
scribes that  the  object  for  which  a  special  meeting  of  a  district  is  called, 
shall  be  specified  in  the  notice  of  such  meeting.  But  an  annual  meet- 
ing is  always  an  adjourned  meeting.  It  is  not  necessary  to  give  special 
notices,  as  every  inhabitant  of  the  district  is  presumed  to  know  when  it 
will  be  held,  and  also  that  any  business  which  may  properly  come  before 
any  district  meeting,  may  be  transacted  at  this.  It  is  the  meeting  of 
the  district,  and  every  inhabitant  is  bound  to  be  present  to  promote  the 
interests  of  the  district  as  well  as  to  protect  his  own  rights. 

The  whole  business  of  the  meeting  of  April  7th,  was  subject  to  review 
and  it  was  competent  to  reconsider  and  rescind  the  whole  or  any  part 
thereof  except  so  far  as  the  trustees  had  carried  out  the  vote  of  the 
first  meeting,  or  incurred  debts  or  responsibilities  under  it. 

Per  Morgan,  December  30,  1851. 

Whenever  the  inhabitants  of  a  school  district  are  misled  by  the  erroneous  advice 
of  the  town  superintendent,  and  their  rights  become  jeopardized  thereby,  this 
department  will  interpose  for  their  relief,  it  being  a  caso  of  surprise. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  an  annual  meeting  in  a 
district  on  the  6th  day  of  October  last,  in  voting  to  change  the  site  of 
the  school-house,  and  to  levy  a  tax  to  purchase  a  new  site  and  build  a 
school-house  thereon. 

The  appellants  ask  that  the  proceedings  of  said  meeting  may  be  set 
aside  so  far  as  they  relate  to  their  votes,  on  the  ground  that  they  did 
not  suppose  that  resolutions  upon  these  subjects  could  be  passed  at  an 
annual  meeting,  and  therefore  they  were  not  present  at  the  meeting 
above  referred  to.  Annexed  to  the  appeal  are  the  affidavits  of  several 
taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district  stating  that  they  were  informed  by 
the  town  superintendent,  that  the  site  of  the  school-house  could  not  be 
changed  except  at  a  special  meeting  duly  called  for  that  purpose.  It 
appears  that  quite  a  large  number  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  who 
were  desirous  of  being  present,  whenever  the  resolution  to  change  the 
site  of  the  school-house  was  to  be  acted  upon,  believed  this  information 
to  be  correct,  and  therefore  did  not  attend  the  annual  meeting.  That 
such  information  wTas  given  by  the  town  superintendent  is  in  fact  conce- 
ded by  him  in  a  letter  to  this  department,  although  he  states  that  soon 
alter  his  conversation  with  the  appellants  he  found  upon  examining  the 
statute,  that  the  opinion  which  he  had  expressed  was  incorrect. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  65 

Inasmuch  as  the  appellants  have  been  misled  by  his  information  and 
advice,  it  appears  to  me  that  such  a  case  of  surprise  is  made  out,  as 
calls  for  relief  from  this  department. 

The  prayer  of  the  appellants  is  granted. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  March  25,  1852. 

It  is  not  necessary  that  a  majority  of  all  the  taxahle  inhabitants  should  be 
obtained,  in  addition  to  the  consent  of  the  town  superintendent,  in  order  to 
change  the  site,  but  only  a  majority  of  those  present,  and  voting  at  a  meet- 
ing duly  notified. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  a  special  meeting  held  in 
said  district  on  the  18th  day  of  October,  1851. 

At  this  meeting,  it  appears  that  resolutions  were  passed  changing  the 
site  of  the  school-house,  and  authorizing  the  collection  of  $10.00  by 
tax,  for  purchasing  a  new  site,  and  $175.00  for  building  a  new  school- 
house  thereon.  The  appellant  alleges  that  these  resolutions  were  not 
passed  in  the  manner  required  by  law,  and  that  the  town  superinten- 
dent never  legally  gave  his  consent  to  the  proposed  change  of  site. 

The  appeal  papers  concede  that  the  resolution  to  change  the  site, 
was  passed  by  a  vote  of  a  majority  of  all  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the 
district  who  were  present  and  voted  at  the  meeting.  Therefore,  if  the 
consent  of  the  town  superintendent  was  given  in  accordance  with  law, 
the  resolution  to  change  the  site  was  passed  by  the  required  legal 
majority  of  the  inhabitants.  For  it  is  not  necessary,  that  in  addition  to 
the  consent  of  the  town  superintendent,  a  majority  of  all  the  taxable 
inhabitants  residing  in  the  district  should  be  obtained,  in  order  to 
change  the  site,  but  only  a  majority  of  those  present  and  voting  at  a 
meeting  duly  notified. 

It  appears  by  the  answer  that  the  town  superintendent  did  give  his 
consent  in  writing,  to  the  proposed  change,  on  condition  that  the 
requisite  majority  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  should  be  in  favor  of 
the  change.  This  consent  became  absolute  the  moment  the  condition 
was  complied  Avith.  The  requisite  was  obtained  upon  the  passage  of 
the  resolutions. 

Appeal  dismissed. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  March  25,  1852. 

Where  a  town  superintendent  decides  that  a  vacancy  exists  in  the  office  of 
trustee,  he  should  wait  one  month  after  announcing  his  decision,  before 
assuming  to  fill  the  vacancy. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  a  decision  and  order  of  the  town  superinten- 
dent of  Beekmantown,  on  the  22d  day  of  November  last,  deciding  that 
there  were  two  vacancies  in  the  office  of  trustee  in  said  district  and 
appointing  two  persons  to  fill  such  vacancies. 

From  a  careful  examination  of  the  papers,  I  am  satisfied  that  tho 
town  superintendent  was  correct  in  deciding  that  the  vacancies  existed ; 
but  the  district  being  a  joint  one  lying  partly  in  two  different  towns,  it 
required  the   action  of  the  town  superintendents  of  both  towns  to  fill 

[Digest.]  9 


66  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

the  vacancies  by  appointment.  The  appointments  which  were  made 
were  therefore  void,  although  the  town  superintendent  in  proceeding  to 
fill  the  vacancies  may  have  acted  in  perfect  good  faith. 

But  even  if  he  had  the  right  to  fill  the  vacancy,  I  am  of  opinion  that 
he  should  have  waited  one  month  after  announcing  his  decision,  that 
the  office  was  vacant,  in  order  that  the  inhabitants  might  have  an  oppor- 
tunity to  supply  the  vacancies  if  they  desired  to  do  so. 

Therefore  it  is  hereby  declared  that  the  appointments  so  as  aforesaid 
made,  were  and  are  irregular  and  void,  and  the  clerk  of  said  district  is 
hereby  ordered,  within  ten  days  after  he  receives  this  order,  to  call  a 
special  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  filling  the  vacancies  which  exist  in 
the  office  of  trustee  in  said  district,  &c. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  March  26,  1852. 

Where  a  building  committee  in  concert  with  the  trustees  are  invested  with  discre- 
tionary power  by  resolution  of  a  district  and  have  entered  upon  the  execu- 
tion of  their  trust,  by  making  contracts  for  materials,  &c,  the  district  can- 
not control  or  interfere  with  their  plans. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  a  building  committee 
appointed  to  take  charge  of  building  a  new  school-house,  and  from  the 
refusal  of  the  trustees  to  call  a  special  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  com- 
paring drafts  and  models  of  architecture  and  adopting  the  best  plan,  for 
building  a  school-house,  wood-house  and  other  fixtures  belonging  to  the 
same. 

In  reply  to  the  appeal  the  trustees  and  building  committee,  allege 
that  on  or  about  the  8th  day  of  March  last,  at  a  special  meeting  called 
for  the  purpose,  the  district  voted  to  build  a  new  brick  school-house  20 
by  25tj-  feet ;  that  Benjamin  Wright  and  others,  then  submitted  their 
plans  or  drafts  for  building  said  house  which  were  voted  down  by  the 
meeting.  A  vote  was  then  passed  giving  the  trustees  and  building  com- 
mittee discretionary  power  in  regard  to  building  and  furnishing  said 
house  in  the  best  and  cheapest  manner  according  to  the  size  above 
mentioned. 

They  further  allege  that  in  pursuance  of  such  vote,  they  went  on  and 
purchased  brick  and  materials  and  entered  into  a  contract,  for  laying 
the  brick  and  stone,  and  lathing  and  plastering  the  interior  of  the  build- 
ing, and  procured  window  frames  and  doors  and  sash  with  glass  set,  and 
that  the  walls  of  the  house  were  now  up  and  the  roof  nearly  completed. 

Under  such  circumstances,  the  superintendent  is  of  the  opinion  that 
it  is  now  too  late  to  interfere  with  the  proceedings  of  the  building  com- 
mittee. The  district  might  have  restricted  their  powers  by  a  vote  for 
that  purpose,  when  they  were  appointed,  but  having  failed  to  do  so,  and 
having  vested  them  with  a  discretion  in  the  discharge  of  their  duties, 
there  is  nothing  in  the  case  which  calls  for  the  interposition  of  this 
department. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  May  19,  1852, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  67 

Who  are  legal  voters  at  district  meetings,  and  what  vote  necessary  to  raise  tax  by 
installments. 

The  qualification  of  voters  in  school  district  meetings,  is  defined  in 
§  59,  chap.  480,  Laws  of  1847.  (No.  84,  School  Laws  and  Forms  for 
1848.) 

Every  person,  to  be  a  voter  in  a  school  district  meeting  must,  there- 
fore, be  a  male  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  a  resident  of  the  district. 
Any  person  having  these  three  qualifications,  and  "  entitled  to  hold 
lands  in  this  state,  who  owns  or  hires  real  property  in  such  district, 
subject  to  taxation  for  school  purposes"  is  a  voter. 

This  clause  authorizes  aliens,  who  have  declared  their  intention  to 
become  citizens  of  the  United  States,  and  who  have  filed  a  certificate 
of  such  intention  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  State,  to  vote,  provided 
they  own  or  hire  real  property  in  the  district.  It  also  authorizes 
tenants  of  houses  or  lands,  subject  to  taxation  in  the  district,  to  vote, 
whether  they  pay  the  taxes  or  not.  Legal  voters  at  town  meetings,  wTho 
have  paid  a  rate  bill  for  teacher's  wages  within  one  year  preceding,  are 
also  voters  in  the  district  where  they  reside. 

Any  person  who  has  a  family,  and  is  a  legal  voter  at  town  meetings, 
and  has  personal  property  liable  to  be  taxed  in  the  district,  exceeding 
$50.00  in  value,  exclusive  of  such  as  is  exempt  from  execution,  is  also  a 
voter. 

A  man  without  a  family,  having  personal  property  exceeding  $50.00  in 
value,  liable  to  taxation,  is  also  a  voter,  because  his  property  is  none 
of  it  exempt  from  execution. 

Hence  it  follows  that  while  on  the  one  hand,  in  some  cases,  aliens, 
not  legal  voters  at  town  meetings,  may  be  legal  voters  at  district  school 
meetings ;  on  the  other  hand,  in  all  cases,  legal  voters  at  town  meetings, 
who  do  not  own  or  hire  real  property,  and  who  have  not  personal  pro- 
perty exempt  from  execution,  exceeding  $50.00  in  value,  are  not  legal 
voters  in  district  school  meetings.  And  as  to  be  "  a  male  of  full  age, 
and  a  resident  of  the  district,"  is  an  essential  qualification  of  every  voter, 
women  are  necessarily  denied  the  privilege  of  voting  in  any  case. 

A  district  meeting  legally  called  and  assembled,  may,  by  a  majority 
of  those  present  and  voting,  vote  to  raise  $400.00  or  less,  for  the  purpose 
of  building  a  school-house-;  and  also  any  sum  necessary  for  the  pur- 
chase of  a  site.  And  if  the  town  superintendent  shall  certify  in  writing, 
that  a  larger  sum  is  necessary  for  building  a  school-house,  and  shall 
specify  the  sum,  any  amount  not  exceeding  the  sum  so  specified,  may  be 
raised  by  a  majority  of  the  legal  voters  present  and  voting  at  the  meet- 
ing.    (§  70,  chapter  480,  Laws  of  1847.  ) 

School  districts  are  not  permitted  to  mortgage  or  incumber  their 
school-house  lot.  But  in  order  to  enable  a  district  to  raise  a  large  sum 
of  money,  without  the  necessity  of  laying  a  tax  for  the  whole  of  it  in 
one  year,  §  71,  chapter  480,  Laws  of  1847,  provides  for  raising  a  tax  by 
installments. 

The  words  "  taxable  inhabitants,"  in  this  section,  being  used  without 
limitation  or  qualification,  must  be  construed  to  mean  all  who  are  liable 


68  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

to  be  taxed,  and  who  attend  the  meeting — citizens,  aliens,  women, 
minors,  residing  in  the  district.  The  number  of  taxable  inhabitants  can 
be  ascertained  from  the  last  assessment  roll  of  the  town.  A  majority 
of  such  inhabitants  attending,  to  be  ascertained  by  taking  and  recording 
the  ayes  and  noes,  is  necessary  to  the  validity  of  a  vote  to  raise  a  tax 
by  installments.  But  this  majority  must  be  made  up  of  legal  voters, 
for  although  this  section  of  the  statute  requires  a  majority  of  all 
the  taxable  inhabitants  attending  to  have  their  names  recorded  in 
the  affirmative,  it  does  not  make  all  the  taxable  inhabitants  legal 
voters  for  the  purposes  of  such  a  vote.  Who  then  are  legal  voters 
under  this  section  ?  The  same  persons  and  no  others,  authorized  to 
vote  by  §  59,  hereinbefore  quoted.  Neither  women  nor  minors,  nor 
persons  not  liable  to  be  taxed,  can  vote  upon  the  question  of  raising  a 
tax  by  installments.  Therefore,  a  man  who  hires  a  house,  and  is  a  legal 
voter  at  district  meetings  in  ordinary  cases,  but  who  is  not  on  the 
assessment  roll,  and  pays  no  taxes,  cannot  vote  upon  this  question.  If 
one  person  owned  all  the  land  of  a  school  district,  and  it  was  all 
assessed  to  the  owner,  the  tenants  could  not  vote  upon  this  question, 
unless  they  were  assessed  for  personal  property.  Non-residents, 
although  taxable,  are  not  such  "  taxable  inhabitants,"  within  the  mean- 
ing of  this  section,  as  to  be  enumerated  in  estimating  the  number  of 
taxable  inhabitants  in  the  district,  and  they  are  not  voters  in  any  case. 
The  tax  raised  by  virtue  of  this  section,  must  also  be  raised  by  equal 
annual  installments,  for  example  :  If  it  be  voted  to  raise  $1000.00  in  five 
equal  annual  installments,  the  sum  to  be  raised  each  year  must  be  $200.00, 
and  not  as  some  have  supposed,  $200.00  with  the  interest,  that  is 
$207.00  at  the  end. of  the  first  year,  $214.00  at  the  end  of  the  second 
year,  and  so  on.  Trustees  and  others  must  therefore  make  their  con- 
tracts accordingly. 

Per  Morgan,  September  26,  1848. 

A  chairman  of  a  school  district  meeting  is  entitled  to  a  vote  upon  all  questions 
involving  the  levying  of  a  tax. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  the  annual  meeting  held  in 
said  district  on  the  5th  day  jof  April  last,  in  voting  a  tax  of  $400.00  for 
the  purpose  of  building  a  school-house  therein.  It  appears  by  the 
papers  in  the  case,  that  the  resolution  by  which  the  tax  was  authorized, 
was  passed  by  a  vote  of  six  to  five  against  the  same.  The  appellant 
claims  that  the  resolution  was  illegally  passed,  because, 

1.  The  clerk  of  the  meeting  refused  to  call  the  name  of  the  chair 
■man,  denying  his  right  to  vote  ; 

2.  That  had  the  chairman  been  allowed  to  vote,  he  would  have  voted 
against  said  resolution  ;  and 

3.  That  one  of  the  votes  in  favor  of  said  resolution,  was  given  by  a 
person  who  was  not  a  legal  voter  in  said  district. 

In  their  answer  to  the  appeal,  the  trustees  concede  that  the  chairman 
was  not  permitted  to  vote  upon  said  resolution,  but  they  deny  that  he 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  CO 

was  lawfully  entitled  to  vote  thereon,  on  the  ground  that  he  was  chair- 
man of  the  meeting  and  only  entitled  to  a  casting  vote. 

The  trustees  having  made  this  concession  have  clearly  shown  that  the 
proceedings  of  the  meeting  were  not  legally  conducted,  inasmuch  as  a  legal 
vote  was  rejected,  which  if  received  might  have  affected  the  result  of  the 
vote  upon  the  resolution.  The  chairman  was  equally  entitled  to  vote 
upon  the  question  of  raising  the  tax  with  the  other  tax  payers  and 
voters  of  the  district,  and  the  meeting  had  no  right  to  deprive  him  of 
his  privileges  or  others  of  the  benefits  which  they  might  have  received 
had  his  vote  been  counted. 

It  is  therefore  ordered  that  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  aforesaid, 
so  far  as  the  same  relate  to  the  resolution  authorizing  a  tax  of  $400.00 
for  the  purpose  of  building  a  school-house,  be  and  the  same  are  hereby 
set  aside. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  June  25,  1852. 

Trustees  have  the  power  to  exempt  indigent  persons  either  wholly  or  in  part 
from  the  payment  of  a  rate  bill,  and  to  collect  the  same  by  tax  upon  the 
district,  but  for  an  abuse  of  this  power,  this  department  will  set  aside  their 
proceedings. 

The  facts  of  this  case  as  agreed  upon  and  submitted  are  substantially 
as  follows : 

On  the  22d  day  of  June  last,  the  trustees  made  out  a  rate  bill  to 
collect  the  sum  of  $320.00  due  for  teachers'  wages.  In  so  doing  they 
exempted  in  the  first  place  several  of  the  persons  named  in  the  rate 
bill  fiom  the  payment  of  any  part  of  the  amount  assessed  against  them, 
and  then  all  others  from  the  payment  of  one-half  of  their  assessments. 

The  whole  amount  of  the  exemptions  was  $239.29,  and  to  collect 
this  sum,  the  trustees  made  out  a  tax  list  against  the  taxable  inhabitants 
of  the  district.  In  this  tax  list  is  included  one  of  the  persons  who  was 
wholly  exempted,  and  all  of  those  who  were  exempted  in  part,  from  the 
payment  of  their  rate  bill,  and  are  assessed  for  real  property  situated  in 
the  district.  From  the  proceedings  of  the  trustees,  as  above  stated,  this 
appeal  is  brought  on  the  ground  that  the  exemptions  were  irregular  and 
unauthorized  by  law. 

The  statute  has  vested  in  the  trustees  of  school  districts,  the  power 
of  exempting,  either  wholly  or  in  part,  as  they  may  deem  expedient, 
such  indigent  inhabitants  as  may  in  their  judgment  be  entitled  to 
exemption  from  the  payment  of  a  rate  bill,  and  to  collect  the  amount 
of  such  exemptions  by  a  tax  upon  the  district. 

This  provision  of  the  law  is  a  wise  and  humane  one,  and  whenever 
the  authority  is  judiciously  exercised  by  the  trustees  in  behalf  of  those 
who  need  its  benefits,  their  action  will  not  be  disturbed  by  this  depart- 
ment. 

But  the  legislature,  in  passing  such  a  statute,  in  my  judgment  never 
designed  that  it  should  have  so  extensive  and  sweeping  an  effect  as  has 
been  given  to  it  in  this  case.  It  was  intended  for  the  benefit  of  those 
whose  circumstances  were  such  as  to  render  them  unable  to  procure. the 


-70  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

moans  of  paying  for  the  tuition  of  their  children.  There  doubtless 
were  many  of  this  class  in  the  district  referred  to,  and  in  reference  to 
whom  the  trustees  have  very  properly  exercised  the  power  vested  in 
them  by  law.  But  it  appears  to  me  they  have  gone  beyond  the  intention 
of  the  statute.  They  have  exempted  every  inhabitant  of  the  district 
who  sent  to  school,  from  the  payment  of  at  least  one-half  of  his  rate 
bill,  apparently  without  any  reference  to  the  amount  of  property  owned 
by  each.  This  they  had  the  power  to  do,  provided  such  inhabitants 
were  unable  to  pay  the  amount  assessed  against  them.  But  the  fact 
that  every  one  of  those  who  were  exempted  in  part,  were  assessed  upon 
the  tax  list  for  real  property  situated  in  the  district,  furnishes  strong 
evidence  of  an  ability  to  pay.  If  the  property  was  incumbered  to  the 
extent  of  or  beyond  its  value,  the  trustees  should  have  made  that  fact 
appear.  There  is,  however,  no  testimony  upon  that  point,  and  as  the 
cage  now  stands,  I  am  of  opinion  that  all  of  those  who  were  exempted  in 
part,  and  one  of  those  who  was  wholly  exempted  were  not  entitled  to 
the  benefits  of  the  statute. 

For  the  reasons  above  stated,  it  is  therefore  ordered  that  the  tax  list 
and  warrant  above  referred  to  be,  and  the  same  is  hereby  set  aside. 

Per  H.  W.  Johnson,  Dep.  Supt.,  August  11, 1852. 

When  an  appeal  is  pending  hefore  this  department,  all  proceedings  in  the  dis- 
trict from  whence  the  appeal  comes,  in  relation  to  the  subject  matter  involved 
in  the  appeal,  are  stayed  until  the  decision  of  the  appeal. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  a  special  meeting  held  in 
said  district  on  the  7th  day  of  June  last. 

By  the  papers  in  the  case,  it  appears  that  the  meeting  was  called  for 
the  purpose  of  organizing  the  district  and  choosing  district  officers,  and 
that  the  same  was  held  while  an  appeal  was  pending  in  relation  to  the 
action  of  the  town  superintendent  in  forming  the  district.  This  fact 
being  conceded,  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  must  be  set  aside,  for 
the  appeal  stayed  all  proceedings  in  relation  to  organizing  the  district 
until  it  was  finally  decided,  and  the  meeting  therefore  could  not  legally 
be  held. 

It  is  therefore  ordered  that  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  held  in 
said  district  on  the  7th  day  of  June  last,  be  and  the  same  are  hereby 

Cpf     Q  CI  ("If* 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  October  13,  1862. 

A  school-house  cannot  be  used  for  any  other  than  school  purposes  except  by  the 
unanimous  consent  of  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district. 

This  is  an  appeal  taken  from  the  action  of  the  trustees  of  School 
District  No.  16,  in  the  town  of  Almond,  Allegany  county,  they  having 
suffered  the  school-house  in  said  district  to  be  opened  and  employed  for 
the  holding  of  public  meetings,  resulting  in  great  damage  to  the  building, 
the  fences  around  it,  and  the  books  belonging  to  scholars. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  71 

It  is  also  objected  that  the  school  is  frequently  required  to  be  dismissed 
from  one  to  two  hours  earlier  than  usual,  on  the  days  when  meetings 
are  held  in  said  school-house,  &c. 

The  employment  of  a  school-house  for  public  and  especially  for  reli- 
gious meetings,  when  not  wanted  for  school  purposes,  has  been  a  time- 
honored  custom  upon  which  the  superintendent  is  reluctant  to  intrench. 
Nor  should  there  be  in  his  opinion,  any  objection  raised  against  the 
practice  except  in  case  of  flagrant  misemployment  of  the  district  pro- 
perty. But  the  question  being  raised,  the  necessity  of  deciding  it  accord- 
ing to  the  law  of  the  land,  devolves  upon  the  State  Superintendent. 

The  trustees  of  each  school  district  have  the  custody  and  control  of 
the  school-house,  for  the  purposes  defined  and  specified  in  the  act  con- 
ferring this  authority.  In  general,  school-houses  are  built  for  the  pur- 
pose of  public  instruction  by  teachers  holding  regular  certificates  of 
qualification,  and  also  to  furnish  a  place  for  the  holding  of  school  district 
meetings  and  for  no  other  purpose.  No  inhabitant  of  a  district  can  be 
taxed  for  firewood  employed  in  warming  a  room  for  religious  exercises, 
or  cleaning  it  and  repairing  the  wear,  however  slight,  which  attends 
such  use.  It  is  not  within  the  power  of  a  majority,  however  large,  to 
authorize  a  tax  for  any  such  purpose,  nor  to  devote  the  district  property 
to  any  object  outside  of  the  purposes  of  common  school  instruction 
which  may  expedite  in  the  slightest  degree  the  period  when  such  tax 
will  become  necessary  against  the  willof  asingle  dissentient  tax  payer, 
however  ungenerous  and  unreasonable  may  be  his  objections. 

In  short  the  employment  of  school-houses  for  such  objects  is  only 
tolerated  by  general  consent.  This  department  never  raises  the  question. 
On  the  contrary,  it  approves  the  liberality  of  sentiment  which  permits 
the  use  of  these  edifices  for  all  praiseworthy  objects  of  public  interest, 
whether  denominated  religious  or  secular.  It  is,  however,  under  the 
necessity  of  sustaining  the  objection  when  it  is  made.  It  is  very  pro- 
bable that  those  who  procure  such  a  decision  will  soon  find  occasion  to 
regret  it,  in  consequence  of  being  themselves  excluded  from  the  use  of 
the  school-house  for  some  purpose  in  which  they  may  take  an  interest. 
The  exclusion  of  all  persons  from  occupation  of  the  school-house  for 
other  than  common  educational  purposes,  applies  necessarily  to  every 
occupation  whether  religious  or  otherwise. 

The  appeal  is  sustained. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  July  17,  1855. 

The  assent  of  a  majority  of  the  officers  constituting  the  board  is  necessary  to  the 

validity  of  any  order  altering  a  district ;  and 
If  the  district  be  a  joint  one,  a  majority  of  the  officers  of  each  of  the  towns  from 

which  such  district  is  formed. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  supervisors,  town  superintendents  and  town 
clerks  of  the  towns  of  Argyle  and  Fort  Edward  on  the  10th  day  of 
February  last,  setting  off  a  part  of  the  above  named  district  to  Joint 
District  No.  8,  of  said  towns. 


72  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

It  is  conceded  in  this  case,  that  the  order  was  made  without  concur- 
rence of  the  supervisors  and  town  clerk  of  Fort  Edward.  The  alteration 
is  therefore  void,  for  it  is  well  settled  that  the  assent  of  a  majority  of 
the  officers  of  each  of  the  towns  from  which  a  joint  district  is  formed,  is 
necessary  to  the  validity  of  any  order  altering  the  same. 

The  order  above  referred  to  is  therefore  hereby  set  aside. 
Per  H.  S.  Randall,  May  13,  1853. 

Where  a  claim  against  a  school  district  has  been  presented  to  the  board  of  super- 
visors, and  the  board  direct  or  refuse  to  direct  the  amount  to  be  levied  and 
collected  uoon  such  district,  an  appeal  will  not  lie  to  this  department. 

The  appellant  m  this  case  seeks,  among  other  things,  to  obtain  pay- 
ment of  a  claim  which  he  makes  against  the  above  named  district  for 
costs  and  expenses  incurred  in  suits  brought  against  him  in  his  official 
capacity. 

To  establish  the  validity  of  this  claim,  he  has  set  forth  the  proceedings' 
of  several  meetings  held  in  said  district  at  various  periods,  from  1849  to 
the  fall  of  1852,  and  has  given  a  detailed  statement  of  the  manner  in 
which  the  claim  accrued. 

In  reference  to  the  whole  question,  it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  it  appear? 
from  the  evidence  before  me,  that  this  claim  has  twice  been  presented 
to  the  board  of  supervisors  of  the  county  of  Oswego,  for  allowance,  ip 
pursuance  of  chapter  172,  of  the  Laws  of  1847,  and  each  time  the  board 
have  refused  to  direct  the  amount  to  be  collected  out  of  the  district 
From  such  a  refusal,  the  law  has  made  no  provision  for  an  appeal  te 
this  department  or  to  any  other  tribunal.  It  was  evidently  the  inten- 
tion of  the  act  of  1847,  to  make  the  decision  of  the  board  of  supervisor* 
in  such  cases  final  and  conclusive  in  the  premises.  I  have  therefore  no 
power  to  grant  the  relief  asked  for. 

Appeal  dismissed. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  May  12,  1853. 

Where  an  adjournment  of  a  special  district  meeting  is  had  for  a  period  more  than 
one  month,  notice  of  the  object  of  such  adjourned  special  meeting  is  neces- 
sary. 

The  appellant  in  this  case  seeks  to  set  aside  the  proceedings  of  an 
adjourned  school  meeting,  held  on  the  2d  day  of  July  last,  and  the 
proceedings  of  the  trustees  in  making  out  a  tax  list  to  collect  a  tax 
voted  at  said  meeting. 

By  the  papers  before  me,  it  appears  that  a  meeting  was  held  on  the 
24th  day  ot  May  last,  for  the  purpose  of  selecting  a  site  and  voting  a 
tax  for  building  a  school-house.  This  meeting  was  adjourned  to  the  2d 
day  of  July.  It  is  conceded  by  the  trustees,  that  no  notice  of  the 
adjourned  meeting  was  given,  and  they  claim  that  none  was  necessary. 
The  omission  to  give  this  notice,  is  one  of  the  grounds  of  complaint  in 
the  appeal. 

By  §  81  of  the  School  Law  of  1847,  clerks  of  school  districts 
are  required  to  give  notice  in  writing,  of  the  time  and  place  for  any 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  73 

adjourned  district  meeting,  when  the  same  shall  be  adjourned  for  a 
longer  period  than  one  month.  From  this  section,  it  is  manifest  that 
notice  is  required  in  all  cases  where  a  meeting  has  been  adjourned 
for  more  than  one  month.  A  failure  to  give  such  notice  would  be  fatal, 
as  a  failure  to  give  any  notice  of  the  time  and  place  of  holding  the 
annual  meeting.  The  adjournment  in  this  case  exceeded  one  month, 
and  therefore  notice  of  the  meeting  should  have  been  given.  As  it  was 
entirely  omitted,  the  proceedings  were  irregular,  and  must  be  set  aside. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  October  6,  1853. 

No  notice  of  an  assessment  is  required  except  where  an  original  valuation  is 
made ;  nor  is  a  notice  that  a  tax  list  has  been  placed  in  the  hands  of  a  col- 
lector for  collection  necessary. 

The  appehants  in  this  case  seek  to  obtain  an  order  setting  aside  a  tax 
list  on  the  following  grounds  : 

1.  That  the  trustees  did  not  give  any  notice  to  the  tax  payers  to  meet 
and  review  their  assessment  roll. 

2.  That  they  did  not  give  any  notice  that  said  tax  list  was  completed 
and  that  the  trustees  would  meet  on  a  certain  day  to  receive  payment 
of  taxes  without  any  per  centage. 

3.  That  the  collector  did  not  advertise  according  to  law  that  he  would 
receive  voluntary  payment  of  taxes. 

These  objections  are  untenable.  The  present  school  law  does  not 
require  any  notice  of  an  assessment  to  be  given  by  the  trustees  of  a 
district  except  when  an  original  valuation  is  to  be  made,  which  was 
not  done  in  this  case.  Nor  does  it  require  the  collector  to  give  any 
notice  whatever  that  a  tax  list  has  been  placed  in  his  hands  for  collec- 
tion. All  of  the  former  provisions  of  law  requiring  such  notices  to  be 
given  have  been  repealed. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  dismissed. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  May  26,  1853. 

Trustees  have  the  power,  when  in  their  discretion  circumstances  require  it,  to 
establish  temporary  branch  schools  in  a  district,  and  employ  a  teacher,  with- 
out any  vote  of  the  district,  and  a  due  proportion  of  the  public  money  should 
be  applied  to  the  payment  of  such  teacher. 

It  is,  perhaps,  to  be  regretted  that  the  law  has  left  so  much  to  the 
discretion  of  trustees,  in  reference  to  the  institution  of  temporary 
branch  schools.  Such  schools  frequently  become  necessary,  owing  to 
some  extraordinary  circumstances  which  for  the  time  being  exist  in  a 
district.  Whenever  such  necessity  does  arise,  the  trustees  have  an 
undoubted  right  to  exercise  the  discretion  which  the  statute  has  vested 
in  them,  by  employing  a  teacher,  and  opening  a  temporary  school  for 
the  accommodation  of  the  children,  without  any  vote  of  the  inhabitants. 
In  this  district  the  majority  of  the  trustees  have,  on  several  occasions, 
determined  that  such  necessity  did  exist ;  and  the  inhabitants,  at  their 
annual  meetings  in  1850  and  1851,  have  approved  that  determination 
by  directing  the  application  of  a  part  of  the  public  money  to  the  sup- 

[Digest.]  10 


f  4  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

port  of  the  branch  school.  The  institution  of  such  a  school  in  this  dis- 
trict, has  also  met  the  approval  of  the  town  superintendent  of  Whites- 
town,  as  appears  from  a  letter  addressed  by  him  to  the-department,  and 
a  decided  majority  of  the  taxable  inhabitants  have  expressed  themselves 
satisfied  with  the  proceedings  of  the  majority  of  the  trustees  as  appears 
by  a  petition  accompanying  the  answer. 

Under  these  circumstances,  though  it  does  not  clearly  appear  that  all 
the  proceedings  of  the  district  in  relation  to  the  institution  of  the  branch 
school  have  been  strictly  in  accordance  with  law,  I  am  of  opinion  tliat 
harmony  and  good  order  which  are  so  essential  to  the  prosperity  of  a 
school  will  be  best  secured,  and  the  interests  of  a  majority  of  the  inha- 
bitants be  best  promoted,  by  sanctioning  the  proceedings  of  the  trustees 
in  establishing  the  school  in  question  and  allowing  a  portion  of  the 
public  money  to  be  applied  towards  its  support. 

The  proceedings  of  the  trustees  are  therefore  affirmed  and  the  appeal 
dismissed. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  June  16,  1853 

A  supervisor  and  town  clerk  ca?inot  act  in  the  formation  or  alteration  of  a  school 
district,  without  the  presence  of  the  town  superintendent. 

The  appellants  in  this  case  seek  to  set  aside  an  order  made  at  a 
meeting  of  the  town  superintendent  of  Jefferson,  and  the  supervisors 
and  town  clerks  of  Blenheim  and  Jefferson,  on  the  30th  day  of  April 
last,  forming  a  new  district,  to  be  composed  of  parts  of  District  No.  6, 
Jefferson,  and  No.  3,  Blenheim. 

From  an  examination  of  the  papers,  I  am  of  the  ©pinion  there  is  a 
fatal  objection  to  this  order. 

It  appears  that  the  town  superintendent  of  Blenheim  was  not  present 
at  the  meeting  of  the  board,  and  did  not  participate  in  making  the 
order.  The  supervisor  and  town  clerk  of  that  town  were  members  of 
the  board,  but  they  had  no  authority  to  act  without  the  presence  of 
the  town  superintendent.  The  statute  authorizes  them  to  be  associated 
with  him  in  forming  or  altering  school  districts.  In  no  case,  however, 
does  it  authorize  them  to  act  without  him.  The  board,  therefore,  had 
no  power  to  alter  any  district  located  in  that  town. 

The  order  therefore  is  hereby  set  aside. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  August  18,  1853. 

The  right  of  an  acting  town  superintendent  to  the  office  will  not  he  inquired  into 
collaterally. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  an  order,  setting  off  a  portion  of  School  Dis- 
trict No.  8,  in  the  town  of  Preston,  to  District  No.  2,  of  the  town  of 
McDonough. 

The  principal  ground  of  appeal,  and  the  only  one  considered  is,  that 
Isaac  S.  Stafford,  acting  as  town  superintendent  of  Preston,  had  no 
right  to  assist  in  making  this  order,  for  the  reason  that  he  had  removed 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  15 

from  the  town,  and  thereby  vacated  his  office.     The  fact  that  he  was 
the  acting  town  superintendent  of  Preston,  is  conceded  in  the  appeal. 

This  being  the  ease,  his  right  to  hold  the  office  cannot  be  called  in 
question  in  this  proceeding.  That  is  a  question  which  can  only  be 
tried  by  an  action  at  law  brought  for  that  purpose.  The  courts  have 
uniformly  held  that  the  right  of  a  person  to  a  public  office  cannot  be 
inquired  into  collaterally. 

Under  the  former  practice,  it  could  only  be  tested  by  a  writ  of  "  quo 
warranto"  It  can  now  only  be  tested  by  an  action  in  the  nature  of  a 
"  quo  warranto" 

This  objection,  therefore,  to  the  order  is  overruled. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  October  26,  1853. 

This  department  will  set  aside  the  proceedings  of  a  district  meeting,  when  vnduc 
advantage  is  taken  of  those  of  the  inhabitants  who  do  not  happen  to  be  pre- 
sent at  the  precise  hour  the  meeting  is  called,  especially  where  the  custom 
has  been  to  hold  open  until  one  hour  after  the  time  mentioned  in  the  notice 
before  organizing. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  the  annual  meeting  held  in 
the  district  on  the  first  day  of  October  last. 

The  appellants  allege  that  the  meeting  was  called  to  be  held  at  six 
o'clock  in  the  evening,  at  about  which  time  three  only  of  the  legal  voters 
of  the  district  met  at  the  school-house  and  immediately  organized  and 
proceeded  to  elect  officers,  and  to  make  a  division  of  the  public  money 
for  the  ensuing  year  ;  as  soon  as  this  business  was  transacted  they 
adjourned  for  a  year.  Soon  after  and  about  seven  o'clock  in  the  evening, 
several  other  legal  voters  appeared  at  the  school-house  accompanied  by 
one  of  the  trustees,  who  was  prepared  to  submit  his  annual  report,  but 
they  found  the  meeting  had  been  held  and  adjourned  as  above  stated. 
They  further  allege  that  it  had  been  the  custom  in  that  district  at  their 
annual  meeting  to  wait  until  one  hour  after  the  time  specified  in  the 
notice  before  organizing  the  meeting. 

As  no  answer  to  the  appeal  has  been  received,  these  allegations  must 
be  deemed  established.  If  they  were  untrue  those  who  sought  to  sus- 
tain the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  were  bound  to  deny  them. 

Upon  this  statement  of  the  facts  I  am  of  opinion  that  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  meeting  should  be  set  aside.  There  was  more  haste  in  the 
transaction  of  the  business  than  was  required,  and  many  were  doubtless 
led  to  suppose,  by  the  former  practice  of  the  district,  that  nothing  would 
be  done  before  the  hour  of  seven  in  the  evening ;  besides  an  opportunity 
ought  to  have  been  given  to  the  trustee  whose  term  expired,  to  make 
his  annual  report.  It  may  lead  to  serious  embarrassment  and  difficulty 
hereafter  if  it  is  omitted. 

The  proceedings  of  said  meeting  are  therefore  hereby  set  aside. 
Per  H.  S.  Randall,  November  29,  1853. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 


The  mere  act  of  voting  to  select  a  particular  piece  of  land  upon  which  to  erect  a 
school-house,  does  not  establish  the  site.  It  must  be  followed  by  an  actual 
leasing  or  purchase. 

The  appellants  in  this  case  allege,  that  on  the  31st  day  of  May,  1851, 
at  a  special  meeting  regularly  called,  a  resolution  was  passed  authorizing 
the  selection  of  a  site  for  building  a  school-house  on  the  land  of  Mr. 
Fenner,  and  the  collection  of  a  tax  to  pay  for  the  same. 

The  trustees  assessed  the  tax,  and  about  #45.00  of  it  was  collected, 
but  they  neglected  to  purchase  the  site.  On  the  12th  day  of  March, 
1853,  at  a  regularly  called  meeting,  a  resolution  was  passed  authorizing 
the  selection  of  a  site  on  the  land  of  J.  H.  Dwick,  and  a  tax  of  $350.00  for 
building  a  school-house.  The  trustees  then  took  the  money  which  had 
been  collected  for  the  purchase  of  the  site  first  selected,  and  with  it 
purchased  the  Dwick  site.  It  is  claimed  by  the  appellants  that  it  was 
illegal  to  change  the  site,  after  the  money  had  been  collected  to  pay 
for  the  same ;  that  no  change  could  be  made  without  the  consent  of 
the  town  superintendent,  and  that  it  was  illegal  to  use  for  the 
Dwick  site,  the  money  that  had  been  raised  for  purchasing  the 
"Fenner"  site. 

In  reply  to  these  allegations,  the  trustees  state  that  after  the  meeting 
of  May  31,  1851,  and  on  the  15th  of  November  of  that  year,  at  a  special 
meeting  legally  held,  a  resolution  was  passed  rescinding  the  resolution 
of  the  former  meeting,  authorizing  the  selection  of  a  site  upon  the  land 
of  Mr.  Fenner.  At  a  subsequent  special  meeting,  a  resolution  was 
passed  authorizing  the  selection  of  a  site  upon  the  land  of  Mr.  Dwick. 
No  action  was  taken  at  that  meeting  in  reference  to  the  disposition  to 
be  made  of  the  money  which  had  been  raised  for  the  purchase  of  a  site, 
but  at  the  annual  meeting  held  since  this  appeal  was  brought,  the 
trustees  were  directed  to  use  the  money  in  the  purchase  of  the  "  Dwick 
site." 

The  case  referred  to  by  the  appellants,  in  Barbour's  Supreme  Court 
Reports  (vol.  4,  p.  25),  in  support  of  their  first  objection,  does  not 
sustain  the  point  they  raise.  The  court  merely  decides  that  a  district 
cannot  legally  rescind  a  resolution  imposing  a  tax,  after  the  tax  list  has 
been  made  out  and  the  tax  partly  collected.  That  decision  is  in 
accordance  with  repeated  decisions  of  this  department  in  which  it  has 
been  held,  that  a  district  could  not  legally  rescind  a  resolution  confer- 
ring any  authority  upon  the  trustees,  after  they  have  entered  upon  the 
performance  of  the  duty  imposed  by  the  resolution.  But  these  decisions 
do  not  touch  this  case.  The  resolution  authorizing  the  collection  of 
the  tax,  was  distinct  and  separate  from  that  authorizing  the  selection  of 
the  site,  and  the  repeal  of  the  latter  in  no  respect  affected  the  right 
of  the  trustees  to  collect  the  tax.  Besides,  it  is  conceded  and  in  fact  is 
made  the  subject  of  complaint  by  the  appellants,  that  the  trustees  had 
not  taken  any  steps  towards  purchasing  the  site  named  in  the  resolu- 
tion which  was  rescinded.  If  they  had  not,  the  district  clearly  pos- 
sessed the  power  of  rescinding  the  resolution  in  the  manner  they  did, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  77 

unless  their  action  had  so  established  the  site  that  it  could  not  be 
changed  without  the  consent  of  the  town  superintendent.  The  mere 
act  of  voting  to  select  a  particular  piece  of  land  upon  which  to  erect  a 
school-house  does  not  establish  the  site.  Something  more  is  necessary 
to  accomplish  that.  The  vote  must  be  followed  up  by  an  actual  leasing 
or  purchase.  In  this  case  there  is  no  pretense  that  a  title  to  the  site 
could  not  be  procured.  But  it  is  alleged  that  the  trustees  neglected  to 
procure  it,  although  they  might  have  done  so,  and  the  district  after 
wards  took  from  them  the  authority  to  make  the  purchase.  This,  I 
think,  they  had  a  right  to  do  without  the  consent  of  the  town  superin- 
tendent, if  they  deemed  it  proper.  I  can  therefore  perceive  no  ille- 
gality in  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting,  in  selecting  a  site  upon  the 
land  of  Mr.  Dwick. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  dismissed. 

Per  H.  S.  Randall,  November  29,  1853. 

It  is  the  duty  of  trustees  when  requested  by  a  respectable  number  of  the  taxable 
inhabitants  of  their  district  to  call  a  special  meeting  for  the  transaction  of 
any  legal  and  proper  business,  which  such  petitioners  may  desire  to  bring 
before  it. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  refusal  of  the  respondents  to  call  a  special 
meeting  of  the  inhabitants  and  legal  voters  of  the  district  for  the  pur- 
pose of  taking  into  consideration  the  application  and  division  of  the 
public  money  of  said  district  on  the  request  of  twenty  taxable  inhabi- 
tants thereof.  The  trustees  in  their  answer  set  forth  certain  facts  and 
circumstances  existing  in  the  district  which  in  their  judgment  justified 
them  in  declining  to  call  such  meeting  and  in  making  such  disposition 
of  the  public  money  as  they  should  deem  expedient. 

This  view  of  the  subject  cannot  in  the  opinion  of  the  superintendent 
be  sustained.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of  a  school  district,  when- 
ever requested  by  a  respectable  number  of  inhabitants  and  legal  voters 
of  a  district,  to  call  a  special  meeting  for  the  transaction  of  any  legal 
and  proper  business  which  such  inhabitants  may  desire  to  bring  before 
it.  The  object  of  the  petitioners  in  this  case  was  unquestionably  a  legal 
and  proper  one.  The  inhabitants  and  legal  voters  of  the  district  are 
authorized  to  make  such  disposition  of  the  public  money  among  the 
several  terms  of  the  school  as  they  may  judge  proper,  and  it  is  only 
when  they  omit  to  act  in  the  matter  that  the  trustees  are  empowered  to 
exercise  their  own  discretion.  If  an  improper  disposition  of  the  public 
money  is  made  by  the  inhabitants,  an  adequate  remedy  is  provided 
by  appeal  to  this  department.  The  circumstances,  therefore,  set 
forth  by  the  trustees  in  their  answer  were  insufficient  to  justify  them 
in  their  refusal  to  call  the  special  meeting  called  for.  The  trustees 
therefore  are  hereby  ordered,  within  five  days  after  the  receipt  of  this 
order,  to  cause  notices  to  be  given  for  a  special  meeting  of  the  legal 
voters  of  the  district,  to  be  held  within  ten  days  thereafter,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  taking  into  consideration  the  application  and  division  of  the 
public  money  of  said  district  for  the  ensuing  year,  &c. 

Per  E.  \V.  Leavenworth,  February  28,  1854. 


18  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Where  trustees  give  their  order  for  a  greater  amount  of  public  money  to  pay  a 
teacher  than  is  in  the  superintendent's  hands,  and,  to  make  up  the  deficiency, 
anticipate  the  public  money  for  a  succeeding  year,  and  pay  it  out  of  their 
own  funds,  they  are  without  remedy ;  the  deficiency  should  be  collected  by 
rate  bill. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  order  of  the  trustees  for  the  amount  of 
public  money  due  a  teacher  employed  by  them,  including  a  balance  of 
86.50  advanced  by  one  of  the  trustees  on  a  previous  order  made  at  tho 
termination  of  the  summer  school.  The  appellants  insist  that  the  bal- 
ance should  have  been  raised  by  rate  bill  on  the  inhabitants  sending  to 
school  during  that  term. 

From  the  papers  in  the  case  it  appears  that  Harriet  A.  Cooper,  a 
legally  qualified  teacher,  was  employed  by  the  trustees  to  teach  the 
summer  school  at  $12.00  per  month  ;  that  at  the  expiration  of  her  term 
an  order  and  certificate  was  drawn  on  the  town  superintendent  for  the 
whole  amount  of  her  wages,  $36.00,  of  which  $29.50,  being  the  whole 
amount  of  teachers'  money  in  the  hands  of  the  town  superintendent 
belonging  to  the  district  for  the  current  year,  was  paid,  and  the  balance, 
$6.50,  advanced  to  the  teacher  by  Mr.  Allen,  one  of  the  trustees;  that 
Miss  Cooper,  prior  to  the  expiration  of  the  summer  term,  was  reemployed 
for  the  winter  term  at  $16.00  per  month,  at  the  expiration  of  which, 
and  on  the  10th  of  March  last,  the  trustees  gave  her  an  order  on  the 
town  superintendent  for  $62.50,  being  the  amount  of  her  wages  for  that 
term,  with  the  addition  of  the  $6.50  advanced  by  Mr.  Allen,  as  aforesaid  ; 
and  that  such  order  was  accepted  by  the  town  superintendent,  payable 
from  the  teachers'  money  to  be  apportioned  to  the  district  for  the  pre- 
sent year. 

The  superintendent  is  of  opinion,  under  these  circumstances,  that  the 
trustees  erred  in  including  in  their  order  and  certificate  for  the  winter 
term  the  balance  due  on  the  summer  term.  After  exhausting  the  public 
money  applicable  to  the  latter  term,  they  should  have  collected  the 
balance  by  rate  bill ;  if  they  were  at  liberty  to  anticipate  the  public 
money  for  a  succeeding  year  by  advancing  the  amount  due,  they  might, 
upon  the  same  principle,  continue  such  a  procedure  indefinitely,  and  there- 
by thwart  the  obvious  intention  of  the  law  and  the  views  and  wishes  of  the 
inhabitants  of  the  district.  The  amount  in  controversy  in  the  present 
case  is  small,  but  the  principle  involved  is  one  of  the  utmost  importance 
to  the  proper  administration  of  the  system  of  public  instruction. 

The  trustees  are,  therefore,  hereby  directed  to  amend  their  order  and 
certificate  in  the  hands  of  the  town  superintendent,  by  reducing  the 
amount  to  $56.00,  the  sum  due  on  the  winter  term,  and  to  make  out  a 
rate  bill  and  warrant  in  the  mode  prescribed  by  law  for  the  collection 
of  the  balance  from  those  who  sent  to  school  during  the  summer  term. 

Per  E.  W,  Leavenworth,  April  5,  1854, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  Y9 

Where  inhabitants  have  been  properly  set  off  from  one  district  to  another  and  the 
town  clerk  has  omitted  to  record  the  same,  they  will  be  regarded  as  inhabi- 
tants of  the  district  to  which  they  have  been  annexed  after  being  acquiesced 
in  for  five  years 

Appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  a  special  meeting  held  on  the  28th 
of  March  last,  authorizing  the  trustees  to  levy  a  tax  on  the  district  to 
defray  the  expense  of  moving  the  school-house  to  the  new  site  or  to  let 
the  job  of  moving  the  same  to  the  lowest  bidder.  The  appellants  in 
support  of  the  appeal  allege, 

That  seven  persons,  who  attended  the  meeting  and  voted,  were  not 
inhabitants  of  and  legal  voters  in  said  district,  having  been  annexed  in 
1839  to  Joint  District  No.  1,  Blenheim  and  Fulton,  and  there  being  no 
record  in  the  town  clerk's  office  of  either  of  said  towns  of  their  subse- 
quent transfer,  either  to  District  No.  5  or  any  other  district. 

In  reply  to  this  allegation  the  affidavits  of  the  town  superintendents 
of  Fulton  and  Blenheim  for  the  year  1849  are  produced,  showing  that 
the  individuals  referred  to  and  their  property  were  in  the  spring  of  that 
year  transferred  by  them  from  Joint  District  No.  1  to  District  No.  5, 
and  that  the  order  made  by  them  to  that  effect  was  transmitted  or  deli- 
vered to  the  town  clerks  of  their  respective  towns  for  record.  It  also 
appears  from  the  affidavit  ot  the  appellants  that  from  that  period  to  the 
present  the  persons  so  transferred  have  acted  in  and  been  regarded  as 
inhabitants  of  District  No.  5,  and  their  children  enumerated  therein. 
Under  these  circumstances  and  after  an  acquiescence  of  five  years  the 
proof  of  such  transfer  must  be  regarded  as  sufficient,  notwithstanding 
the  omission  of  the  town  clerks  to  record  the  same. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  May  12,  1854. 

A  tax  voted  for  the  purchase  of  a  site  cannot  be  raised  by  installments.  A  tax  list 
for  the  whole  amount  must  be  made  out  within  thirty  days  from  the  voting 
of  the  tax. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  proceedings  of  an  adjourned  special  meet- 
ing, held  on  the  4th  of  May  last,  at  which  the  site  of  the  school-house 
of  the  district  was  changed  and  a  tax  of  $200.00  voted  to  build  a  school- 
house  thereon  and  to  fence  the  site,  such  tax  to  be  collected  in  two 
equal  installments,  one-half  on  the  1st  of  September  and  the  remainder 
on  the  1st  of  December  next. 

There  is  an  objection  appearing  upon  the  face  of  the  proceedings, 
which  is  fatal  to  the  validity  of  the  vote  for  raising  the  tax  for  pur- 
chasing the  site.  The  superintendent  is  unable  to  find  any  authority 
in  the  school  law  for  raising  the  amount  provided  for  by  the  vote  of 
the  district  in  two  installments,  one  payable  in  September  and  the 
other  in  December  next.  When  a  greater  sum  than  $400.00  is  directed 
to  be  raised  for  building  a  school-house,  in  the  manner  prescribed  by 
§  71  (No.  93),  School  Laws,  such  amount  may  be  raised  in  equal 
annual  installments,  as  therein  provided ;  but  where  the  amount  to  be 
raised  is  for  the  purpose  of  a  site,  no  provision  exists  for  raising  such 


80  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

amount  by  installments,  and  the  law  requires  the  tax  list  for  the  wholo 
amount  to  be  made  out  within  thirty  days  from  the  voting  of  the  tax. 
The  resolution  referred  to  was  therefore  illegal  and  invalid  for  this 
cause,  and  so  much  of  the  proceedings  of  the  special  meeting  appealed 
from  as  relates  to  the  raising  of  the  tax  of  1200.00  to  purchase  and 
fence  the  site,  payable  in  installments,  as  therein  specified,  is  hereby 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  Supt.,  June  12,  1854. 

A  school  district  cannot  be  formed  out  of  the  central  portion  of  another  district, 
leaving  the  territory  of  the  latter  disconnected. 

This  is  an  appeal  from  the  order  of  the  town  superintendent  of 
Fremont,  Sullivan  county,  creating  a  new  district  (No.  6)  from  territory 
now  known  as  District  No.  5  of  said  town. 

The  appellants  raise  the  following  point : 

1.  Said  order  of  the  town  superintendent  erects  a  new  district  (No.  6) 
in  the  central  portion  of  District  No.  5,  thus  disjoining  the  parts  of  said 
District  No.  5. 

The  question  to  be  considered  is  : 

Can  a  district  be  formed  out  of  the  central  portion  of  another  district, 
leaving  the  former  disjointed  ?  The  answer  is  clearly  in  the  negative, 
as  has  been  the  uniform  ruling  of  this  department.  (See  Common  School 
Decisions,  p.  109.)  In  the  case  there  cited,  Superintendent  Dix  pro- 
perly remarks  that  school  districts  must  be  formed  of  contiguous  farms. 
If  the  example  of  forming  them  of  farms  not  adjacent  to  each  other 
should  be  sanctioned,  it  is  difficult  to  foresee  what  disorder  and  confu 
sion  it  might  not  create,  besides  opening  a  door  to  unequal  and  unjusl 
organizations. 

It  is  therefore  decided  that  the  order  of  the  town  superintendent,  as 
hereinbefore  recited,  is  illegal,  and  the  same  is  hereby  set  aside. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  September  18,  1854. 

Where  one  trustee  employs  a  teacher  without  consulting  with  his  associates,  and 
his  action  is  silently  acquiesced  in  until  the  expiration  of  the  term,  their 
approval  of  the  contract  will  be  implied,  and  they  should  sign  an  order  for 
the  public  money  for  teachers'  wages  when  applied  to. 

This  is  an  appeal  taken  by  a  teacher  from  the  action  of  two  of  the 
trustees  of  School  District  No.  8,  in  the  town  of  Oxford,  Chenango 
county.  Said  trustees  refuse  to  sign  an  order  upon  the  town  superin- 
tendent of  Oxford  for  the  sum  of  $20.00  to  compensate  the  appellant 
for  her  services  as  teacher  of  the  school  in  said  district,  upon  the  ground 
that  the  appellant  was  employed  in  January,  1854,  as  teacher  by  George 
Stratton,  the  third  trustee,  upon  his  own  responsibility,  the  respon- 
dents not  having  been  informed  by  said  Stratton  of  the  employment  of 
the  appellant,  nor  of  the  conditions  either  of  time,  wages  or  qualifica- 
tions ;  and  that  therefore  appellant  is  not  entitled  to  any  share  of  the 
public  money  for  the  school  taught  by  her  last  winter. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  81 

It  appears  that  said  Harriet  Webb  was  employed  by  one  of  the  trus- 
tees in  his  official  capacity  to  teach  a  public  school,  in  said  district  at 
the  rate  of  two  dollars  a  week,  and  that  she  was  so  employed  ten  weeks. 
Neither  of  the  other  trustees  appear  to  have  dissented.  They  cannot 
be  presumed  to  have  been  ignorant  of  the  fact,  and  must  be  considered 
as  having  acquiesced.  This  is  the  view  which  would  be  taken  in  any 
court  of  judicature  having  jurisdiction  of  the  case. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained,  and  the  town  superintendent  of  the 
town  of  Oxford,  is  hereby  ordered  to  pay  to  the  said  Harriet  Webb,  for 
her  services  as  teacher  in  said  district,  the  sum  of  $20.00  from  the  share 
of  the  public  money  belonging  to  said  district. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  October  23,  1854. 

An  alien,  though  he  has  taken  the  incipient  measures  to  be  naturalized,  is  not 
qualified  to  vote  at  a  school  district  meeting  in  the  district  where  he  resides, 
unless  an  affidavit  of  that  fact  be  filed  and  recorded  in  the  office  of  the 
Secretary  of  State. 

This  is  an  appeal  taken  by  five  of  the  inhabitants  from  the  proceed- 
ings of  a  special  school  district  meeting,  holden  in  District  No.  6,  in  the 
town  of  Montague,  Lewis  county,  in  the  early  part  of  October,  1854. 

The  appellants  aver  that  persons  not  duly  qualified  to  vote  did  vote 
*t  said  meeting,  and  that  their  votes  affected  the  result.  It  seems  that 
the  only  material  vote  of  the  meeting  was  carried  by  two  majority, 
whereas  the  right  of  three  persons  to  vote,  who  voted  with  the  majority, 
was  doubtful.  One  of  them  was  a  man  working  for  a  resident  of  the 
district,  but  whether  he  was  of  legal  age  and  possessed  the  other  requi- 
site qualifications  is  by  no  means  certain. 

The  other  two  persons,  Messrs.  Fuller  and  Boyd,  are  aliens,  and  only 
during  the  week  that  the  meeting  of  May,  1854,  stood  adjourned  to, 
did  they  file  their  intentions  of  becoming  citizens.  An  alien,  though 
he  has  taken  the  incipient  measures  to  obtain  naturalization,  cannot 
hold  real  property  or  be  a  qualified  voter  at  a  school  district  meeting  in 
the  district  where  he  resides. 

He  is  required  to  make  a  deposition  or  affirmation  in  writing,  before 
an  officer  authorized  to  take  the  proofs  of  deeds  to  be  recorded,  that  he 
is  a  resident  of  and  intends  always  to  reside  in  the  United  States  and 
to  become  a  citizen  thereof  as  soon  as  he  can  be  naturalized,  and  that 
he  has  taken  such  incipient  measures  as  the  laws  of  the  United  States 
require  to  enable  him  to  obtain  naturalization,  which  shall  be  certified 
by  such  officer,  and  be  filed  and  recorded  by  the  Secretary  of  State  in 
a  book  to  be  kept  by  him  for  that  purpose,  and  such  certificate,  or  a 
certified  copy  of  it,  shall  be  evidence  of  the  facts  therein  contained. 

As  Messrs.  Fuller  and  Boyd  did  not  comply  with  the  requirements 
of  the  statute,  and  therefore  could  not  become  owners  of  taxable  pro- 
perty, the  conclusion  becomes  a  necessary  sequence  that  the  vote  was 
void. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  October  30,  1854. 

[Digest.]  1 1 


82  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

Tho  statute  directing  town  superintendents  to  pay  out  public  money  only  to  quali- 
fied teachers  duly  employed  upon  the  order  of  the  trustees  employing  them, 
was  enacted  for  the  purpose  of  preventing  embezzlement  by  trustees,  and  if 
he  pays  the  public  money  to  a  trustee  or  other  person  than  the  teacher  with- 
out his  order,  he  does  it  at  his  peril. 

This  is  an  appeal  taken  from  the  action  of  the  trustees  in  School 
District  No.  9,  in  the  town  of  Otto,  Cattaraugus  county,  by  a  teacher 
duly  employed  in  said  district  during  the  last  winter,  on  the  ground  of 
withholding  from  him  a  portion  of  his  salary,  amounting  to  the  sum  of 
$15.86.     The  appeal  is  without  answer. 

The  appellant  testifies  that  while  he  was  engaged  in  the  employ 
of  said  trustees,  two  of  them,  to  wit,  Isaac  Reed  and  Daniel  R.  Grinals, 
wrote  an  order  for  the  residue  of  the  public  money  apportioned  to  said 
District  in  1853,  making  it  payable  to  appellant ;  that  Reed  went  with- 
out appellant's  knowledge  or  consent  and  drew  said  money  in  appellant's 
name  from  the  town  superintendent  of  Otto,  which  money  amounted  to 
$15.86,  as  aforesaid;  that  when  appellant  closed  his  term,  said  trustees 
(two  of  them)  gave  him  another  order  upon  said  town  superintendent 
for  $52.56,  to  be  paid  in  part  of  the  residue  of  the  public  money  appor- 
tioned in  1854 ;  that  said  superintendent  paid  $36.64  on  said  order  and 
retained  it  in  his  possession,  but  refused  to  pay  any  further  amount, 
saying  that  he  had  paid  the  remainder  to  said  Isaac  Reed,  one  of  the 
trustees  of  said  district. 

The  provision  of  the  law  which  directs  town  superintendents  to  pay 
out  public  money  only  to  qualified  teachers  duly  employed,  upon  the 
order  of  the  trustees  employing  them,  was  enacted  for  the  express  pur- 
pose of  preventing  the  opportunity  of  embezzlement  bv  trustees.  If  in 
the  face  of  this  fact  public  money  is  paid  to  a  trustee,  in  the  name  of  a 
teacher  or  otherwise,  without  a  properly  attested  order  from  the  person 
to  whom  it  is  due,  the  town  superintendent  does  it  upon  his  own  respon- 
sibility. In  the  case  in  controversy,  the  trustee,  Reed,  is  liable  for  the 
means  by  which  he  obtained  the  money,  and  the  town  superintendent 
of  Otto  is  responsible  to  School  District  No.  9  for  the  amount  paid  by 
him  to  Reed,  and  he  must  make  good  the  deficiency,  looking  to  Reed 
for  reimbursement. 

This  appeal  is  accordingly  sustained,  and  the  town  superintendent  of 
Otto  is  hereby  ordered  to  pay  to  said  llosea  Edwards,  teacher  aforesaid, 
the  sum  of  $15.86  claimed  by  him,  and  to  preserve  District  No.  9  good 
in  that  amount,  not  charging  said  district  for  the  amount  paid  illegally 
by  him  to  said  Isaac  Reed. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  November  11,  1854. 

Where  two  trustees  employ  a  teacher,  without  consulting  the  third,  the  contract 
is  binding  only  upon  those  who  send  to  the  school  and  the  trustees  making 
the  bargain,  unless  the  conduct  of  ihe  third  trustee  is  such  that  his  acquies- 
cence may  fairly  be  inferred. 

This  is  an  appeal  of  a  trustee  of  School  District  No.  6,  in  the  town 
of  Vernon,  Oneida  county,  from  the  action  of  his  two  colleagues,  upon 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  83 

the  ground  that  a  teacher  has  been  employed  to  instruct  the  school  of 
said  district,  commencing  on  the  30th  day  of  October  last,  and  to  con- 
tinue through  the  winter,  in  and  relating  to  which  engagement  the 
appellant  was  not  consulted,  and  had  no  knowledge.  The  respondents 
acknowledge  the  fact  as  charged,  pleading  that  they  had  no  suspicion 
that  he  would  object. 

The  basis  of  this  appeal  rests  upon  broad  principles,  involved  in  the 
general  laws  of  trust  which  govern  all  fiduciary  transactions.  Contracts 
entered  into  by  all  the  trustees  of  a  school  district,  and  signed  by  two 
of  them,  are  binding ;  and  when  so  signed,  the  presence  of  the  third  is 
presumed  until  the  contrary  is  shown.  Two  trustees  can  contract 
against  the  will  of  the  third,  if  he  was  duly  notified  of  a  meeting  of  the 
trustees,  or  was  consulted  and  refused  to  act.     (9  Wendell,  17.) 

The  appellant  not  being  consulted  in  the  contract  with  .the  teacher, 
Miss  Delia  A.  C.  Alford,  could  in  no  sense  be  responsible,  unless  when 
he  discovered  the  fact  he  should  have  acquiesced. 

Yet  no  fiduciary  transaction  can  exist  without  ail  parties  to  it  are 
cognizant.  The  contract  in  question  is  binding  only  with  the  respon- 
dents and  those  sending  to  the  school,  but  is  void  so  far  as  the  trustees 
officially  and  the  district  are  concerned. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  November  21,  1854. 

Trustees  have  the  power  to  call  special  district  meetings  whenever  they  shall 
deem  it  necessary  and  proper,  even  though  a  meeting  for  the  same  purpose 
stands  adjourned  for  a  period  more  or  less  remote. 

This  is  an  appeal  taken  by  three  taxable  inhabitants  of  School  District 
No.  11,  in  the  town  of  Skaneateles,  Onondaga  county,  from  the  proceed- 
ings of  the  trustees  of  said  district,  in  relation  to  a  tax  levied  therein,  by 
the  order  of  a  special  district  meeting.  The  appellants  state,  that  at  a 
meeting  held  in  said  district,  January  14th,  1854,  permission  having  been 
obtained  from  the  town  superintendent,  a  tax  of  $500.00  was  voted  for 
the  purpose  of  building  an  addition  to  the  school-house,  which  tax  was 
duly  collected  ;  that  the  work  was  let  to  two  bidders,  for  $525.00, 
without  consulting  the  district,  or  being  authorized  by  a  special  meet- 
ing, thus  exceeding  their  powers ;  that  at  the  annual  meeting,  the  dis- 
trict refused  to  vote  a  tax  for  the  additional  $25.00  ;  that  a  special 
meeting  was  called  for  the  purpose  of  voting  upon  such  tax,  and  heU? 
on  the  18th  of  November,  1854;  which  meeting,  without  entertaining 
the  proposition,  resolved,  by  a  vote  of  19  against  10,  to  adjourn  twenty- 
five  weeks ;  that  directly  afterwards,  the  trustees  called  another  special 
meeting,  of  which  they  gave  notice  themselves  (the  clerk  having  refused) ; 
that  said  meeting  was  held  on  the  25th  of  November,  and  by  a  vote  of 
24  against  21  levied  the  said  tax  of  $25.00;  that  said  meeting  wa? 
held  in  the  afternoon,  contrary  to  the  usual  custom  of  the  district,  ana 
at  a  time  when  a  previous  meeting,  called  to  consider  this  very 
question,  stood  adjourned. 


84  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

There  can  be  no  doubt  of  the  authority  of  the  trustees  of  school 
districts  to  call  special  meetings  whenever  they  shall  deem  it  necessary 
and  proper. 

The  statute  declares  this  right  in  express  terms,  without  regard  to 
the  circumstance  that  a  meeting  is  already  called,  or  stands  adjourned 
for  a  period  more  or  less  remote.  It  is  not  difficult  to  imagine  cases  in 
which  the  interests  of  the  district  would  sustain  serious  damage,  if  it 
was  necessary  to  defer  action  till  a  period  fixed  by  a  previous  meeting. 
Exigencies  often  arise,  imperatively  requiring  that  the  inhabitants  of  a 
school  district  assemble  within  the  shortest  time  practicable,  and  of 
these  the  trustees  are  to  be  the  judges. 

The  appeal  is  dismissed. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  January  22,  1855. 

Trustees  cannot  retain  moneys  in  their  hands  to  compensate  them  for  services 

which  they  may  have  rendered  as  trustees. 
The  office  is  merely  honorary. 

The  trustees  of  School  District  No.  5  have  retained  in  their  hands 
different  sums,  amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  $16.50,  as  it  is  stated  in 
the  appeal,  for  their  services  in  bringing  teachers  to  the  district,  taking 
them  to  be  examined  and  carrying  them  home. 

The  only  case  in  which  a  charge  for  expenses  of  transporting  teachers 
could  be  sustained,  would  be  where  it  was  part  of  the  contract  with  the 
teacher  that  her  expenses  for  traveling  should  be  defrayed.  In  this 
case  they  would  constitute  and  should  be  charged  against  the  teacher  as 
wages  paid.  The  trustees  are  entitled  to  no  remuneration  from  the 
district  for  their  services  in  that  capacity,  the  office  being  purely 
honorary. 

They  can  retain  no  money  for  themselves  except  when  they  might 
have  paid  it  for  similar  services  to  third  persons,  and  then  only  for  pur- 
poses expressly  enumerated  in  the  statute  ;  carrying  teachers  to  or  from 
the  place  of  their  employment  is  not  among  those  purposes. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained,  and  the  trustees  above  named  are 
severally  ordered  to  pay  to  the  town  superintendent,  for  the  use  of  the 
district,  the  amount  which  appears  by  the  account  aforesaid  to  have 
been  illegally  expended  and  retained  by  them. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  February  19,  1855. 

Trustees  are  to  assess  the  road  bed  of  a  turnpike  precisely  as  if  that  portion  of  it 
lying  in  their  district  belonged  to  an  individual  not  owning  the  remainder; 
unless  the  net  annual  income  of  the  company  over  and  above  all  expenses  for 
repairs,  &c,  is  less  than  five  per  cent  upon  the  original  cost,  in  which  case 
the  road  is  exempt  from  taxation. 

The  turnpike  company  were  not  assessed  upon  the  town  roll,  and  the 
trustees  admit  that  they  gave  no  notice  of  the  completion  of  their  roll, 
and  consequently  neither  the  appellant  nor  any  other  person  had  the 
opportunity  of  calling  for  the  correction  of  the  valuation  of  the  com- 
pany's property.     The  appellants  swear  positively  that  the  property  of 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  85 

the  company  assessed  at  $600.00  is  worth  $2000.00,  and  the  respondents 
in  their  answer  show  that  they  assessed  it  simply  as  they  would  agricul- 
tural property  at  $30.00  per  acre,  and  apparently  without  allowing  any- 
thing for  the  labor  and  materials  employed  in  making  the  land  covered 
by  the  road  bed  productive  and  valuable  as  a  turnpike.  It  is  of  course 
impossible  for  the  superintendent  to  judge  to  what  degree  this  valuation 
may  be  erroneous.  It  is  sufficient  objection,  however,  that  the  appel- 
lant has  not  had  the  opportunity,  which  the  statute  designed  to 
secure,  of  producing  such  evidence  to  the  trustees  as  he  deemed 
proper  to  induce  them  to  increase  this  valuation  and  thereby  lighten 
the  burden  of  his  own  taxation.  The  judgment  of  the  supreme  court, 
in  the  case  of  the  "  Albany  and  Schenectady  Railroad  Company  vs. 
Osborn,"  (12  Barb.  Supreme  Court  Reports,  223),  shows  that  the  appel- 
lant is  mistaken  in  supposing  that  the  value  of  the  stock  is  to  control 
the  trustees  in  judging  of  the  value  of  that  portion  of  the  plank  road 
in  their  district.  They  are  to  assess  the  road  bed  precisely  as  if  that 
portion  of  it  in  the  district  belonged  to  an  individual  owner,  not  owning 
the  remainder,  unless  the  net  annual  income  of  the  company  over  and 
above  all  expenses  and  repairs  and  collection  of  tolls  is  less  than  five 
per  cent  upon  the  original  cost  of  the  road,  in  which  case  the  road  is 
exempt  from  taxation.  (Laws  of  1854,  p.  168.) 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  March  24,  1855. 


In  the  apportionment  of  public  money,  trustees  should  be  governed  by  the  wishes 
of  the  district;  therefore,  when  the  inhabitants  at  a  district  meeting  adopt  a 
resolution  in  reference  to  the  apportionment  of  the  public  money  which 
was  not  by  its  terms  restricted  to  one  year,  the  trustees  should  regard  it  as 
continuous  in  its  operation. 

It  is  stated  to  have  been  the  custom  of  the  district  to  apply  two- 
thirds  of  the  public  money  to  the  winter  term,  and  the  remainder  to 
the  summer  term.  The  appellant  desires  this  apportionment  to  be 
continued.  He  states  that  no  vote  was  taken  on  the  subject  of  a  divi- 
sion at  the  last  annual  meeting,  under  the  impression  probably  that 
such  direction  was  in  force  for  a  period  longer  than  a  year. 

It  is  not  perceived  that  the  statute  requires  the  inhabitants  to  reite- 
rate their  wishes  annually  in  this  respect,  and  as  it  is  a  matter  in  regard 
to  which  the  interests  of  the  district  are  not  liable  to  change  from  year 
to  year,  there  is  no  reason  of  policy  requiring  such  an  interpretation. 
If  the  last  resolution  adopted  by  the  district  in  relation  to  this  subject 
was  not.  by  its  terms  restricted  in  its  operations  to  a  year,  or  some 
other  definite  period,  the  trustees  should  regard  it  as  still  in  force  and 
as  furnishing  the  rule  for  their  action. 

As  it  does  not  appear  from  the  appeal  what  the  fact  may  be  in  rela- 
tion to  this  point,  the  superintendent  can  only  indicate  the  principle 
which  should  govern. 

It  is  inferred,  from  the  statements  of  the  appeal,  to  be  quite  probable 
that  a  portion  of  the  $52.00,  said  to  be  due  to  the  teacher  for  wages, 
was  earned  by  service  rendered  prior  to  the  1st  day  of  last  January,  in 


86  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

which  case  it  should  not  be  compensated  from  the  money  apportioned 
this  year,  but  a  rate  bill  should  be  issued,  the  amount  collected  upon 
which  shall  be  employed  to  remunerate  said  teacher,  or  to  replace  the 
sum,  if  it  has  been  borrowed  from  the  apportionment  of  this  year. 
The  appeal  is  sustained. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  April  24,  1855. 

Where  there  is  a  deliberate  omission  to  notify  any  taxable  inhabitant  of  a  special 
district  meeting,  at  which  a  tax  is  voted  to  change  site  and  build  a  new 
school-house,  this  department  will  hold  the  tax  list  inoperative  as  to  those 
so  omitted  to  be  notified. 

The  appellants  were  set  off  to  District  No.  8,  on  the  17th  of  January 
last,  by  an  order,  to  take  effect  on  the  1st  day  of  May  instant.  After 
the  making  of  this  order,  several  meetings  were  held  in  District  No.  4, 
of  which  the  appellants  had  no  notice,  and  which  they  did  not  attend, 
under  an  apparent  belief,  on  all  hands,  that  they  had  ceased  to  be 
voters  in  that  district.  At  these  meetings  the  site  of  No.  4  was  changed 
to  a  point  more  remote  from  the  appellants  than  its  former  situation, 
and  a  tax  of  &400.00  was  authorized  for  building  a  new  school-house. 
On  the  9th  of  March,  three  of  the  appellants  were  served  with  a  written 
notice  that  a  meeting  of  Joint  District  No.  4,  Scott  and  Sempronius, 
would  be  held  on  the  16th  of  that  month,  the  notice  not  specifying  the 
object  of  the  meeting.  At  that  meeting  resolutions  were  passed,  reci- 
ting that  doubts  were  expressed  in  regard  to  the  legality  of  the  calls  of 
the  meeting  before  referred  to,  and  reaffirming  and  adopting  the  votes 
for  the  release  of  the  old  site,  the  location  of  the  new  one,  and  for  a  tax 
of  $400.00.  Under  the  authority  of  this  last  meeting,  the  trustees  have 
made  out  a  tax  list,  including  the  appellants,  from  which  and  from  the 
proceedings  of  such  meeting  the  latter  appeal. 

The  facts  are  presented  upon  an  agreed  statement  signed  by  the 
appellants  and  trustees.  There  appears  to  have  been  a  deliberate  omis- 
sion to  notify  the  appellants  of  the  meetings  subsequent  to  January 
17th,  and  an  omission  to  give  them  a  notice  of  the  object  of  the 
meeting  of  March  16th,  which,  taken  in  connection  with  the  manifest 
injustice  of  subjecting  them  to  taxation  for  a  school-house  from  which 
they  are  to  receive  no  benefit,  are  sufficient  grounds  for  declaring  the 
tax  list  inoperative  as  against  them. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained  so  far  as  the  same  relates  to  the  tax 
list,  and  the  trustees  are  authorized  and  directed  to  correct  and  amend 
the  same  by  striking  out  the  names  of  the  appellants,  and  apportioning 
the  amount  of  taxes  assessed  to  them  upon  the  remaining  taxable  inha- 
bitants and  property  of  such  district,  in  proportion  to  the  valuation 
thereof. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  May  9,  1855. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  87 

Town  superintendents  have  no  authority  to  alter  the  boundaries  of  a  school  dis- 
trict, if  the  same  have  been  established  by  this  department  upon  appeal,  until 
after  the  lapse  of  three  years  from  the  time  they  were  so  established,  without 
express  permission  of  the  State  Superintendent. 

The  appellants,  in  making  their  annual  report,  enumerated  among  the 
children  of  their  district  the  five  children  of  Mr.  William  Kaynor.  In 
making  his  apportionment,  the  town  superintendent  deducted  these 
children  from  the  enumeration  of  District  No.  22,  on  the  ground  that 
they  and  their  father  were  residents  of  the  adjoining  district,  No.  21. 
The  trustees  of  the  latter  district  answer  the  appeal. 

It  appears  from  the  evidence  that  the  farm  of  Mr.  Eaynor  was  taken 
from  District  No.  22,  some  five  or  six  years  since,  and  annexed  to  district 
No.  21,  by  an  order  of  the  town  superintendent,  that  officer  not  being 
aware  that  the  line  between  the  said  districts  had  been  established  in 
1830,  by  the  State  Superintendent,  upon  appeal. 

It  has  been  held  that  town  superintendents  have  no  power  to  alter 
the  boundaries  of  a  school  district  if  the  same  have  been  established  by 
this  department,  upon  appeal,  unless  consent  shall  have  been  previously 
given  by  the  State  Superintendent  for  such  alteration.  This  rule  was 
established  to  prevent  the  decisions  of  the  department  from  being 
deprived  of  any  practical  effect,  as  might  be  the  case  if,  immediately 
after  the  decision,  a  new  order  could  be  made  precisely  or  substantially 
similar  to  the  one  which  has  been  set  aside. 

This  reason  fails,  however,  when  lapse  of  time  and  a  consequent 
change  of  circumstances  may  have  made  the  reasons  no  longer  appli- 
cable which  controlled  the  decision.  As  this  is  a  subject  of  regulation, 
it  will  hereafter  be  held  that,  after  a  lapse  of  three  years  from  the  time 
when  the  boundary  of  a  district  shall  have  been  established  by  this 
department,  upon  appeal,  it  shall  no  longer  be  requisite  to  apply  for 
express  permission  of  the  State  Superintendent  to  authorize  a  local 
officer  to  make  an  alteration  of  the  same. 

In  the  case  under  consideration  the  appeal  should  be  sustained,  with- 
out reference  to  the  above  mentioned  objection.  It  is  the  duty  of  the 
town  superintendent  to  apportion  the  public  money  according  to  the 
number  of  children  in  the  several  districts  "  as  the  same  shall  have 
appeared  from  the  last  annual  reports  of  the  trustees,"  and  not  other- 
wise. If  he  deems  the  report  incorrect  it  is  proper  for  him  to  call  upon 
the  trustees  to  correct  it,  and  if  they  refuse  to  do  so,  they  may,  perhaps, 
render  themselves  liable  to  the  penalty  imposed  for  willfully  signing  a 
false  report,  with  the  intention  of  causing  the  town  superintendent  to 
apportion  and  pay  to  their  district  a  larger  sum  than  its  just  proportion 
of  the  school  moneys  of  the  town.  The  report,  however,  is  conclusive 
until  it  shall  be  amended  by  the  trustees,  or  the  question  be  determined 
on  appeal. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  May  12,  1855. 


88  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

The  drawing  of  an  order  for  public  money  is  a  ministerial  act,  which  does  not 
necessarily  require  the  presence  of  the  entire  board  of  trustees. 

The  drawing  of  an  order  is  a  ministerial  act,  which  does  not  necessarily 
require  the  presence  of  the  entire  board  of  trustees.  It  is  simply  the 
execution  of  a  contract,  which  is  obligatory  upon  all  of  them,  if,  as  is  to 
be  presumed,  the  contract  was  regularly  made.  Its  validity  is  not 
questioned  by  the  appellant. 

The  respondents  aver  that  Mr.  Payne  had  refused  to  act  with  one  of 
them,  and  present  this  as  a  reason  for  not  consulting  him  upon  drawing 
the  order. 

This  would  not  excuse  the  omission  if  the  act  was  one  which 
involved  the  exercise  of  judgment,  and  therefore  required  a  meeting  of 
the  entire  board.  A  trustee  cannot  be  permitted  to  retain  his  office  as 
a  mere  obstruction  to  his  colleagues.  If  he  cannot  act  with  his  asso- 
ciates, he  should  resign  ;  and  if,  without  resigning,  he  neglects  to  perform 
the  duties  of  his  office,  it  is  the  duty  of  the  town  superintendent  to  pro- 
secute him  for  the  penalty  imposed  by  the  statute.  But  until  he  has 
resigned  or  been  superseded,  his  colleagues  should  call  upon  him  regu- 
larly to  take  part  in  their  official  action,  to  the  end  that  when  his 
neglect  and  contumacy  shall  be  established  by  reiterated  refusals,  an 
application  may  be  made  to  the  State  Superintendent  for  his  removal. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  Supt.,  June  26,  1855. 

The  statute  authorizes  the  asssociation  of  the  town  clerk  and  supervisor  with 

the  town  superintendent,  upon  the  application  of  the  trustees  of  any  district 

to  be  affected  by  their  action. 
If  only  one  trustee  make  such  application,  such  board  docs  not  obtain  jurisdiction 

of  the  subject  matter ;  the  application  of  a  majority  or  all  of  such  trustees 

is  necessary. 

In  this  case,  districts  situated  in  both  towns  being  affected  by  the 
proposed  order,  a  single  trustee  of  District  No.  2,  in  Halfmoon,  and  of 
Joint  Districts  No.  8  and  18,  in  Halfmoon  and  Waterford,  applied  to 
the  supervisors  and  town  clerks  of  the  two  towns  to  be  associated  with 
the  superintendents  in  their  deliberations.  The  order  was  made  by  this 
board,  thus  assembled,  and  the  answer  sustaining  and  defending  it  is 
signed  by  every  member. 

The  appellants  insist  that  the  board  was  entirely  destitute  of  jurisdic- 
tion. The  statute  authorizes  the  association  of  the  toAvn  clerks  and 
supervisors  with  the  town  superintendents  only  upon  application  of  the 
trustees  of  any  district  to  be  affected  by  the  proposed  action.  If  a  ma- 
jority of  the  trustees  of  any  one  district  make  the  application,  it  cannot 
be  doubted  that  jurisdiction  is  given  as  to  all ;  in  this  case,  however, 
a  majority  of  the  trustees  of  no  district  made  the  application,  and  the 
supervisors  and  town  clerks,  composing  a  majority  of  the  board,  had  no 
authority  whatever  in  the  premises. 

Considerable  research  has  failed  to  discover  any  adjudged  case  in 
which  the  precise  point  here  presented  has  been  determined.     It  is, 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  8f> 

however,  believed  to  be  impossible,  in  accordance  with  general  princi- 
ples, to  sustain  an  order  made  by  a  tribunal,  which  in  its  constitution  as 
a  whole  has  no  jurisdiction,  although  including  persons,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  two  town  superintendents,  who  acting  alone  by  themselves  would 
have  possessed  the  requisite  authority,  and  although  these  persons  all 
concur  in  the  order,  and  nothing  appears  showing  that  their  judgment 
was  in  any  degree  controlled  or  their  deliberations  affected  by  the  pre- 
sence of  third  parties. 

The  difficulty  is,  that  it  must  always  be  practically  impossible  to  ascer- 
tain whether  the  decision  is  in  fact  the  unbiassed  judgment  of  those  to 
whom  the  duty  of  making  it  has  been  committed  by  law.  It  may  be 
said  that  a  judicial  officer  is  not  only  blameless  but  praiseworthy  for  seek- 
ing to  enlighten  his  own  mind  by  the  suggestions  of  disinterested  and 
intelligent  advisers.  There  is  a  manifest  difference,  however,  between 
his  voluntary  application,  which  is  consistent  with  that  judicial  inde- 
pendence which  it  is  so  important  to  preserve,  and  his  being  subjected 
to  the  influence  of  persons  claiming  to  deliberate  with  him  as  a  matter  of 
right.  It  is,  moreover,  an  element  in  the  policy  of  the  law,  that  all 
persons  required  to  exercise  judgment  for  the  public  good  should  be 
held  to  an  individual  responsibility,  and  not  be  permitted  to  diminish  it 
by  distributing  a  part  of  the  burden  among  others. 

The  appeal  is  sustained. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  July  14,  1855. 

Trustees  cannot  give  notice  for  themselves,  and  receive  it  for  the  district  as  trus- 
tees, of  an  application  to  be  set  off  to  another  district,  and  assent  to  being 
set  off  in  their  official  capacity.     They  cannot  act  in  a  two- fold  capacity. 

The  appellants  state  that  two  of  the  trustees  of  their  district  made 
application  to  the  town  superintendent,  without  giving  notice  to  their 
colleague,  that  their  own  lands  might  be  set  off  to  District  No.  5,  and 
that  upon  that  application,  without  consent  of  the  other  trustee,  the 
order  was  made  setting  off  one  of  them,  Mr.  Southworth.  It  does  not 
appear,  although  it  may  be  surmised,  that  Mr.  Ellis  is  the  other  trustee 
thus  applying.  If  such  was  the  fact,  there  would  be  no  notice,  in  a 
proper  sense,  to  any  trustee  of  the  district.  When  they  applied  to  be 
separated,  it  was  in  their  individual  capacity  and  not  in  their  official 
character. 

They  were  acting,  "prima  facie"  not  in  behalf  of  but  against  the 
district ;  applying  as  private  individuals  to  be  set  off,  and  assenting  to 
being  set  off  in  the  capacity  of  representatives  of  a  constituency  that  may, 
if  the  practice  should  be  tolerated,  be  without  an  opportunity  of  opposing. 
It  follows,  therefore,  that  notice  to  them  has  no  effect  whatever  upon 
the  rights  of  the  district.  There  is  no  evidence  in  this  case  that  any 
written  notice  of  the  order  has  been  served  upon  the  third  trustee,  or 
in  fact  upon  any  trustee.  The  contrary  is  to  be  presumed,  from  the 
fact  that  one  of  the  answers  sets  up  their  application  and  consent  as 
dispensing  with  such  notice.     The  order,  then,  has  not  taken  effect. 

[Digest.]  12 


90  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

There  exists  a  manifest  objection  to  impairing  the  resources  of  a 
feeble  district  to  swell  those  of  one  relatively  stronger,  and  it  is  against 
the  settled  ruling  of  this  department. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  July  19,  1855. 

The  right  to  vote  at  a  school  district  meeting  does  not  depend  upon  the  fact  that 
the  person  offering  to  vote  has  heen  actually  taxed,  but  rather  upon  his 
liability  to  taxation. 

A  motion  to  reconsider  a  vote  of  a  district  meeting  may  be  made  by  a  person 
voting  with  the  minority,  unless  the  meeting  have  a  different  rule. 

The  objections  of  the  appellants  are,  that  two  persons  voted  at  the 
district  meeting,  for  the  change  of  site,  who  are  not  enrolled  upon  the 
tax  list  as  taxable  inhabitants ;  that  by  the  list  referred  to,  there  are 
twenty-six  taxable  inhabitants ;  that  only  twelve  "  taxable  inhabitants" 
voted  in  favor  and  twelve  against  the  resolution  changing  the  site ; 
that  the  motion  to  reconsider  a  former  resolution  adopted  at  a  previous 
meeting,  in  regard  to  the  site,  was  made  by  a  person  who,  at  such  pre- 
vious meeting,  voted  against  the  resolution  of  which  he  moved  a  recon- 
sideration. 

The  rule  of  legislative  proceedings,  which  requires  a  motion  for 
reconsideration  to  be  made  by  one  who  voted  with  the  prevailing 
party,  is  not  binding  upon  the  district  meetings,  unless  expressly  adopted 
by  them.  There  is,  therefore,  no  force  in  the  objection  based  upon  a 
departure  from  this  rule,  as  it  does  not  appear  to  have  been  acted  upon 
by  the  inhabitants  of  District  No.  14. 

The  respondents  allege  that  fourteen  persons  voted  for  the  change  of 
site.  This  is  not  inconsistent  with  the  allegation  of  the  appellants,  for 
they  acknowledge  that  twelve  "  taxable  inhabitants"  thus  voted,  and 
they  aver  that  two  persons  whom  they  deny  to  be  legal  voters  also 
voted  for  the  resolution.  It  was  then  properly  passed,  provided  the 
two  persons  named  had  a  right  to  vote.  Their  title  is  impeached,  on 
the  naked  ground  that  they  are  not  enumerated  on  the  tax  list.  This 
evidence  is  not  sufficient  to  bar  their  right  to  vote,  which  depends  not  on 
the  fact  that  they  are  actually  taxed,  but  upon  their  liability  to  taxation; 
besides,  they  may  have  been  qualified  as  being  authorized  to  vote  at 
town  meetings,  and  having  paid  a  rate  bill  within  a  year,  although 
possessing  no  property  liable  to  taxation.  It  devolves  upon  the  appel- 
lants to  disclose  affirmatively  such  grounds  of  objection  to  one  who  has 
been  admitted  to  vote,  as,  if  taken  for  true,  in  the  very  words  stated,  will 
repel  every  presumption  by  which  his  claim  might  be  sustained,  by 
showing  the  absence  of  some  essential  qualification.  This  the  appellants 
have  failed  to  do,  and  the  objection  must  be  disregarded  and  the  appeal 
dismissed. 

PerE.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  September  15,1855. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  91 

Town  superintendents  should  always  give  notice  to  the  trustees  of  their  intention 
to  consider  any  proposed  alteration  of  their  district,  so  that  they  may  have 
an  opportunity  of  associating  with  him  the  supervisor  and  town  clerk. 

On  the  4th  day  of  April,  1855,  the  appellees  made  an  order  for  alter- 
ing the  district,  by  setting  off  all  that  portion  situated  in  the  town  of 
Independence,  without  obtaining  the  consent  or  giving  notice  to  the 
trustees.  The  original  order  stated  that  it  was  to  take  effect  on  the 
1st  day  of  May,  but  in  the  copy  served  on  the  appellant  this  provision 
was  omitted. 

The  district  was  established  upon  an  appeal  by  the  State  Superintendent 
in  1844,  and  no  permission  was  obtained  for  its  alteration.  No  answer 
is  put  in  by  the  town  superintendent. 

Without  considering  the  expediency  of  the  order,  it  is  sufficient  for 
the  decision  of  the  case  that  the  proceedings  are  entirely  irregular.  The 
order  could  not  take  effect  until  three  months  after  service  of  notice 
thereof  upon  the  trustees  of  the  several  districts  affected  by  the  same, 
except  by  their  assent  duly  obtained  to  its  provisions. 

The  appellant  is  correct  in  believing  that  town  superintendents  should 
always  give  notice  of  their  intention  to  consider  a  proposed  alteration, 
so  that  the  trustees  may  have  the  opportunity  of  associating  the  super- 
visor and  town  clerk  in  the  proceedings  and  of  urging  their  own  objec- 
tions ;  Superintendent  Benton  declares  that  an  omission  in  this  respect 
renders  the  order  void. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained  and  the  order  of  the  town  superin- 
tendent vacated. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  May  28,  1855. 

The  general  rule  is,  that  the  residence  of  the  parents  is  the  residence  of  their  chil- 
dren who  are  for  the  time  being  at  service  under  a  temporary  engagement 
or  for  a  period  of  uncertain  duration.     Exceptions  considered. 

The  appellant  objects  that  two  persons  who  performed  daily  chore 
work  in  his  family  and  attended  the  school  in  District  No.  6,  but  whose 
permanent  residence  was  in  another  district,  were  excluded  from  receiv- 
ing any  reduction  of  their  rates  by  the  public  money.  He  acknowledges 
his  liability  to  pay  for  the  tuition  of  one  of  them,  Harriet  Osterhout, 
but  avers  that  he  gave  express  notice  that  he  would  not  be  liable  for  that 
of  the  other,  who  is  her  brother,  Daniel  Osterhout.  He  also  submits  an 
affidavit  from  the  father  of  these  children,  stating  that  the  contract  in 
relation  to  Daniel  was  that  he  should  be  permitted  to  attend  school  for 
five  days  in  each  week,  and  that  he  should  work  for  the  appellant  upon 
the  sixth  and  whenever  out  of  school  on  other  days. 

There  is  often  considerable  difficulty  in  determining  whether  servants 
employed  from  other  districts,  whose  engagement  is  temporary  or  of 
uncertain  duration,  should  be  enumerated  where  their  employer  or 
where  their  parent  resides.  The  general  rule  unquestionably  is,  that  the 
residence  of  their  parents  is  the  residence  of  employees.  There  is  an 
exception,  however,  in  the  case  of  children  who  may  be  at  service  in 


92  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

this  state,  but  whose  parents  reside  in  some  other  state  of  this  Union  or 
in  a  foreign  land.  In  such  instances  they  are  to  be  reported  in  the  dis- 
tricts in  which  they  actually  reside  at  the  date  of  the  report,  although 
that  residence  may  be  temporary.  It  is,  however,  expressly  declared 
that  the  report  "  shall  not  include  children  belonging  to  the  family  of 
any  person  who  shall  be  an  inhabitant  of  any  other  district  in  this  state, 
in  which  such  children  may,  by  law,  be  included  in  the  reports  of  its 
trustees." 

It  is  not  consistent  with  the  policy  of  the  school  law  to  allow  the 
resources  of  a  district  to  be  impaired  or  rendered  uncertain,  by  the 
capricious  withdrawal  therefrom,  for  a  season,  of  children  whose  parents 
may  prefer  the  school  of  a  neighboring  district.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  state  has  the  same  interest  in  the  education  of  those  persons  whose 
circumstances  require  them  to  resort  to  domestic  service  for  a  livelihood, 
as  in  that  of  more  fortunate  children.  It  is  sound  policy  to  encourage 
their  employers  to  permit  their  attendance  at  school,  by  rendering  its 
expense  as  little  onerous  as  possible.  If  they  are  apprenticed  during 
their  minority,  or  if  manumitted  by  their  parents,  and  working  for  their 
own  behalf,  they  ought  clearly  to  be  enumerated  in  the  district  where 
their  employer  resides,  and  their  tuition  bills  should  be  canceled  or 
reduced  by  its  public  money. 

In  other  instances  the  question  may  turn  upon  the  point  whether  their 
presence  in  the  district  has  for  its  principal  object  domestic  service  in  a 
family,  and  their  attendance  at  school  is  a  mere  incident,  or  whether 
the  attendance  at  school  is  the  principal  inducement,  and  the  service  a 
mere  incident  to  such  attendance.  It  is  impossible  to  lay  down  a  rule 
with  the  requisite  precision  to  meet  all  cases. 

In  the  case  now  in  controversy,  the  evidence  is  insufficient  to  render 
the  superintendent  quite  sure  that  a  correct  decision  is  rendered.  It  is 
therefore  not  proper  to  interfere  with  the  action  of  the  respondents. 

The  two  children  may  have  been  enumerated  in  No.  6,  where  theii 
father  resides ;  it  is  affirmed  by  the  respondents  that  this  actually  was 
the  case.  Even  though  they  had  also  been  wrongfully  enumerated  in 
District  No.  6,  it  would  remain  in  the  power  of  the  trustees,  upon  being 
convinced  that  they  were  non-residents,  to  exclude  them  from  the 
benefit  of  the  public  money. 

It  is  denied  that  the  appellant  gave  notice  that  he  would  not  be  res- 
ponsible for  the  tuition  of'  Daniel  Osterhout ;  but  in  case  he  had  the 
general  control  of  him  as  a  servant,  the  permission  to  attend  the  school 
is  sufficient  to  render  him  responsible.  If  on  the  other  hand,  the  con- 
tract of  hiring  required  him  to  allow  Daniel  to  attend  school,  he  must 
be  regarded  as  having  contemplated  the  legal  liability  which  it  would 
impose  upon  him,  and  as  having  regarded  the  youth's  services  as  a  just 
equivalent.  It  is  by  no  means  to  be  supposed  that  the  appellant  expected 
to  obtain  those  services  at  the  expense,  in  any  degree,  of  the  district. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  dismissed. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  May  25,  1855. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  93 

Presumptively,  the  trustees  of  a  school  district  have  no  right  to  go  beyond  the 
boundaries  of  their  district  to  tax ;  and  when  they  do,  it  lies  upon  them  to 
establish  the  power  to  tax,  and  not  upon  the  party  taxed  to  disprove  it. 

The  trustees,  in  the  answer,  rely  upon  the  fact  that  the  appellant  did 
not  show  that  he  claimed  a  reduction  of  his  tax,  or  that  lie  notified 
them  of  the  alienation  of  the  property  by  the  taxation  of  which  he  is 
aggrieved.     They  do  not  deny  any  of  the  facts  set  up  in  the  appeal. 

The  appellant  avers  that,  about  two  months  previous  to  the  making 
out  of  the  tax  list,  he  had  sold  the  southern  part  of  lot  No.  35  (120 
acres),  in  parcels,  to  two  persons,  who  took  possession  and  resided  upon 
it.  It  is  not  within  the  limits  of  District  No.  7,  but  adjoins  land  owned 
by  the  appellant  in  that  district.  This  is  the  only  circumstance  in 
support  of  the  authority  of  the  respondents  to  tax  it.  The  statute,  how- 
ever, requires  that  it  should  be  owned  or  possessed  by  a  taxable  inhabi- 
tant of  their  district  at  the  time  of  making  out  such  list. 

The  power  being  in  derogation  of  common  right,  which  would  exempt 
all  land  from  being  taxed  elsewhere  than  in  the  district  where  it  lies, 
must  be  construed  rigidly.  The  possession  of  the  purchasers  is  of  itself 
notice  of  their  rights  and  should  put  the  trustees  upon  inquiry. 

While  the  last  assessment  roll  is  to  guide  them  in  the  valuation  of 
any  property  which  they  may  be  authorized  to  tax,  unless  the  right  to  a 
reduction  of  such  a  valuation  be  established,  it  cannot  in  the  nature  of 
things  establish  the  liability  of  such  property  to  taxation.  Presump- 
tively, the  trustees  have  no  right  to  go  beyond  their  district  limits;  when 
they  do  so,  it  lies  upon  them  to  establish  the  power,  and  not  upon  the 
party  taxed  to  disprove  it  or  to  take  notice  that  it  is  about  to  be  exer- 
cised unless  he  remonstrates. 

The  appeal  must  be  sustained. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  February  28,  1855. 

A  consultation  of  two  trustees,  without  the  presence  and  advice  of  the  third,  can 
result  in  nothing  which  can  be  regarded  as  the  action  of  the  board,  unless 
the  third  has  been  regularly  notified  and  fails  to  be  present. 

The  controversy,  in  this  case,  respects  the  validity  of  the  contracts 
with  three  different  teachers.  No  one  of  them  has  been  engaged  in  a 
legal  manner,  for  in  no  case  have  the  trustees  met  and  consulted 
together. 

A  consultation  of  two  trustees  meeting  by  themselves,  without  the 
presence  and  advice  of  the  third,  can  result  in  nothing  which  can  be 
.regarded  as  the  action  of  the  board,  unless  the  third  trustee  has  been 
regularly  notified  of  a  meeting,  and  continues  absent  after  his  colleagues 
have  waited  a  reasonable  time  for  his  attendance. 

The  trustees  cannot  delegate  any  discretionary  power  to  a  third  per- 
son to  execute  the  decision  to  which  they  may  have  arrived  ;  still  less 
can  any  one  of  them  do  so,  although  they  may  doubtless  employ  the 
services  of  a  messenger  to  convey  to  a  proposed  teacher  intelligence  of 
a  positive  and  unconditional  determination  ;  but  this  for  the  sake  of  cer- 


94  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

tainty,  and  to  preserve  the  evidence  of  the  matter,  should  be  reduced  to 
writing  and  authenticated  by  the  signatures  of  a  majority. 

It  results  in  this  case  that  without  reference  to  who  may  be  the  legal 
trustees,  none  of  them  have  contracted  with  any  teacher  in  a  manner 
rendering  their  acts  obligatory  upon  the  district.  Whether  they  have 
rendered  themselves  personally  responsible  to  the  proposed  teacher  is  a 
different  question,  which  it  is  not  necessary  now  to  consider. 

The  principles  herein  stated  will  guide  the  trustees  in  contracting 
with  a  teacher ;  any  two  of  them  may  fix  the  time  and  place  of  a  meet- 
ing for  the  purpose  of  acting  upon  this  subject,  giving  the  third  trustee 
not  less  than  forty-eight  hours'  notice  of  the  time  and  place  fixed  upon, 
and  the  object  of  the  meeting. 

They  should  examine  the  certificates  of  such  teachers  as  may  bo  pro- 
posed, and  receive  from  them  written  propositions  specifying  the  period 
for  which  they  offer  to  teach,  the  amount  of  their  salary,  and  the  manner 
in  which  they  are  to  be  paid  ;  and  should  make  and  sign  a  written  memo- 
randum— indorsed  upon  the  written  proposition  which  may  be  accepted, 
or  repeating  it  in  terms  which  will  identify  it — of  their  action  in  the 
premises,  filing  the  same  with  the  district  clerk. 

This  appeal  is  sustained. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  February  23.  1855. 

An  annual  meeting  appointed  for  the  11th  July  having  been  noticed  for  the  10th, 
but  adjourned  to  the  11th  for  the  transaction  of  business,  held  to  be  legal. 

An  estimate  of  expenditures  must  be  submitted  to  vote,  item  by  item. 

An  item  "  for  sexton,  $50  "  held  to  be  illegal,  being  for  an  officer  and  purpose 
unknown  to  the  law. 

Where  notice  was  given  of  an  annual  meeting  to  be  held  on  the  10th 
of  July,  and,  it  being  doubtful  whether  the  last  preceding  annual  meet- 
ing had  not  fixed  the  11th  day  of  July  for  that  purpose,  the  meeting 
was  adjourned  to  the  latter  day  without  the  transaction  of  any  business 
except  the  appointment  of  a  chairman,  it  was  held  that  the  meeting  of 
the  11th  was  regular  and  its  proceedings  valid,  whether  the  10th  or  the 
11th  was  the  true  time  appointed  for  the  annual  meeting. 

It  was  also  held  that,  whether  the  chairman  elected  on  the  10th  had 
or  had  not  the  right  to  preside  on  the  11th  by  virtue  of  such  election, 
the  acquiescence  of  the  voters  in  his  presidency  was  equivalent  to  a  new 
election. 

The  trustees  having  presented  an  estimate  for  several  heads  of  expen- 
diture, amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  $1800.00,  and  the  vote  having  been 
taken  thereupon  by  asking  each  inhabitant  when  he  deposited  his  ballot 
for  district  officers  whether  he  voted  "  tax"  or  "  no  tax,"  without  in  any 
other  manner  submitting  the  propriety  of  the  items  severally,  it  was  held 
that  the  tax  payers  have  the  right,  not  only  to  fix  the  amount  of  their 
contributions  but  to  specify  the  precise  object  to  which  every  part  thereof 
should  be  appropriated.  The  question  should  be  submitted  to  them  in 
such  a  form  that  every  one  may  have  the  opportunity  of  offering  amend- 
ments increasing  or  diminishing  the  amount  to  be  appropriated  to  any 
of  the  enumerated  objects,   or  of  striking  out.     The  proceedings  not 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  95 

having  been  conducted  in  such  a  way  as  substantially  to  preserve  this 
right,  but  on  the  contrary  apparently  to  subject  the  voters  to  the  dilem- 
ma of  voting  for  the  estimate  as  an  entire  proposition  or  voting  against 
every  part  of  it,  they  were  held  irregular,  and  were  annulled. 

One  of  the  items  in  the  estimate  being  "  for  sexton,  $50,"  it  was  held 
that  the  term  sexton  being  unknown  to  the  law  as  the  designation  of  any 
district  officer,  the  duties  expected  of  him  ought  to  have  been  so  defined 
by  the  resolution  as  to  show  upon  its  face  an  intention  to  appropriate 
the  money  for  services,  like  cleaning  the  school-house,  making  fires,  &c, 
which  are  legitimate  objects  of  taxation.  It  is  not  competent  to  a  dis- 
trict meeting  to  create  a  new  office  having  a  salary  attached  to  it,  though 
it  is  competent  to  vote  compensation  for  services,  not  incumbent  upon 
the  recognized  district  officers,  but  which  are  proper  objects  of  expenditure, 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt..,  October  2,  1855. 

The  power  to  admit  to  the  district  schools  non-resident  pupils  is  vested  by 
statute  in  the  trustees  exclusively. 

The  inhabitants  of  District  No.  1,  Elba,  at  their  annual  meeting, 
September  4,  1855,  passed  a  resolution  to  exclude  non-resident  children 
from  the  district  school.     An  appeal  was  brought. 

So  much  of  the  resolution  as  assumes  to  close  the  school  against 
pupils  from  other  districts  is  unauthorized.  The  trustees  are  invested 
with  the  power  to  admit  such  pupils  by  the  express  terms  of  the  statute. 
It  is  their  duty  to  prescribe  the  conditions  of  admission,  and  they  ought 
to  be  such  as  to  indemnify  the  district  against  any  increased  expense 
resulting  from  the  attendance  of  non-residents.  Proper  security,  more- 
over, ought  to  be  taken  in  advance  for  the  payment  of  any  bills  for 
tuition,  to  which  such  pupils  may  be  subjected,  as  they  cannot  be  col 
lectcd  upon  a  rate  bill  or  by  warrant. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  October  20,  1855. 

In  making  out  a  tax  list,  all  the  trustees  must  be  consulted  and  act  together. 

Two  of  the  trustees  of  District  No.  1,  Hornby,  Steuben  county,  made 
out  a  tax  list,  without  notifying  or  consulting  with  the  third.  The 
other  trustee  and  Mr.  Chalion  Headley  appealed,  and  asked  that  the 
said  tax  list  be  set  aside,  without  pointing  out  any  error  or  alleging  any 
special  grievance. 

It  is  a  clear  and  undoubted  principle  that  the  public  have  the  right  to 
the  counsel  and  service  of  all  the  members  of  a  board  of  trustees,  and 
of  every  other  tribunal,  in  all  their  doings  which  involve  the  exercise 
of  discretion  and  judgment.  The  making  out  of  a  tax  .list  is  of  this 
character.  The  trustees  have  to  determine  who  are  taxable  inhabitants, 
and  for  what  amount  they  shall  be  respectively  assessed.  It  is  true  that, 
upon  examination,  they  may  ascertain  that  the  taxable  inhabitants  of 
their  district  are  the  same  persons  and  no  other  than  those  enumerated 
in  the  last  completed  town  assessment  roll,  and  that  their  property  res- 
pectively remains,  without  any  variation,  as  it  did  at  the  time  such  roll 


90  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

was  completed.  That  determination  having  been  reached,  the  duty  of 
copying  so  much  of  the  assessment  roll  as  relates  to  the  inhabitants  and 
property  of  their  district  is  a  purely  clerical  one,  which  may  as  well  be 
discharged  by  one  trustee  as  by  three.  It  is,  however,  always  a  preli- 
minary question,  whether  such  be  the  fact,  and  the  public  have  an  inte- 
rest that  each  of  the  trustees  should  be  heard  upon  this  question.  A 
trustee  who  is  absent  might  know  and  be  able  to  show  his  colleagues 
that  a  particular  inhabitant  had  received  a  large  accession  to  his  personal 
property,  and  thus  reduce  the  contribution  of  every  other  tax  payer. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained  and  the  proceedings  of  the  trustees 
declared  irregular. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  November  8,  1855. 

The  town  clerk  and  supervisor  have  no  power  to  review  an  order  to  alter  a  school 
district. 

The  town  superintendent  of  Bolton  had  divided  District  No.  5,  in 
said  town,  without  the  consent  of  the  trustees.  The  latter  applied  to  the 
town  clerk  and  supervisor  to  review  the  order  for  such  division,  and 
from  their  refusal  brought  an  appeal  to  the  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction. 

The  supervisor  and  town  clerk  were  correct  in  holding  that  they  had 
no  jurisdiction  to  review  an  order  made  by  the  town  superintendent. 
The  statute  provides  that  these  officers  may,  upon  application  of  the 
trustees,  associate  themselves  with  the  superintendent  in  determining 
upon  a  proposed  alteration  of  a  school  district.  It  is  implied,  from  this 
provision,  that  the  trustees  ought  to  have  such  notice  of  a  contemplated 
alteration  as  would  enable  them  to  exercise  their  right  in  this  respect. 
The  statute,  however,  does  not  prescribe  such  notice  or  regulate  the 
manner  in  which  it  shall  be  given  ;  in  fact,  the  trustees  might  themselves 
desire  an  alteration  which  they  knew  the  superintendent  to  regard  as 
inexpedient,  and  it  is  obvious  that,  in  such  case,  it  would  devolve  upon 
them  to  give  notice  to  him  and  not  to  expect  one.  The  spirit  of  the 
statute  is  satisfied  whenever  it  appears  in  any  way  that  the  trustees  have 
had  the  opportunity  of  availing  themselves  of  the  counsel  of  the  super- 
visor and  clerk,  instead  of  trusting  the  matter  to  the  unaided  judgment 
of  the  superintendent. 

In  this  case  it  clearly  appears,  indeed  it  is  not  denied,  that  previous 
to  the  making  of  the  order  in  question,  the  supervisor,  town  clerk  and 
superintendent  were  assembled  upon  an  informal  call  of  the  inhabitants 
to  consider  the  subject  of  an  alteration  ;  that  the  trustees  were  present 
and  had  their  attention  distinctly  called  to  the  fact  that  the  town  clerk 
and  supervisor  could  act  only  on  their  application,  and  that  they  stood 
mute.  The  objection  comes  with  an  exceedingly  bad  grace  from  them, 
that  they  have  been  deprived  of  the  opportunity  to  do  that  which  they 
had  refused  to  do  when  it  was  in  their  power.  It  is  entitled  to  no 
weight  whatever. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  December  1,  1855. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  97 

A  candidate  for  a  teacher's  certificate  should  be  examined  as  to  learning,  morals 

and  ability  to  teach. 
When  a  candidate  is  refused  a  certificate  on  the  alleged  ground  of  "  feelings  of 

dissatisfaction  on  tlie  part  of  some  of  the  patrons  of  the  school,"  a  new 

examination  will  be  ordered. 

The  town  superintendent  of  Burns,  Allegany  county,  refused  Miss 
Jane  E.  Gilbert  a  certificate  of  qualification  as  a  teacher,  from  which  refusal 
she  appealed. 

The  evidence  in  this  case  renders  it  exceedingly  difficult  to  ascertain 
precisely  upon  what  grounds  Miss  Gilbert  was  refused  a  certificate.  It 
tends  to  show  that  the  superintendent  expressed  himself  satisfied  with 
her  education  and  literary  acquirements.  If  he  entertained  doubts  as 
to  her  capacity  to  impart  instruction,  the  testimony  fails  to  show  that 
he  took  proper  measures,  by  visiting  her  school  or  otherwise,  to  arrive 
at  an  intelligent  conclusion  on  this  point.  In  a  letter  to  her,  he  referred 
to  "  feelings  of  dissatisfaction  on  the  part  of  the  patrons  of  the  school," 
as  having  been  considered  by  him  in  arriving  at  his  determination  to 
withhold  a  certificate.  Such  feelings  or  opinions  were  no  proper  guide 
to  the  superintendent,  and  should  have  had  no  other  effect  than  to 
induce  greater  care  to  examine  the  foundation  of  them  for  himself,  and 
decide  upon  his  own  knowledge  and  responsibility.  Their  existence 
may  be  a  proper  element  of  consideration,  in  determining  the  trustees 
of  a  particular  district  to  forego  the  services  of  a  qualified  teacher,  but 
they  are  no  test  of  competency,  and  should  not  have  the  effect  (as  they 
do,  if  adopted  by  the  superintendent)  of  excluding  a  teacher  from  every 
district  in  the  town.  It  follows,  that  no  good  reason  has  been  shown 
on  the  part  of  the  superintendent  for  withholding  the  certificate.  On 
the  other  hand,  it  is  possible  that  his  conclusion  is  correct,  although 
founded  upon  insufficient  evidence ;  and  there  is  not  such  affirmative 
testimony  of  Miss  Gilbert's  entire  fitness  to  teach,  before  the  department, 
as  to  warrant  it  in  ordering  the  superintendent  to  certify  to  her  quali- 
fications. To  justify  this,  it  should  have  such  knowledge  as  would 
induce  the  State  Superintendent  himself  to  grant  a  ceilifieate. 

The  appeal  can  be  sustained  only  so  far  as  to  relieve  Miss  Gilbert 
from  the  imputation  that  a  valid  judgment  has  been  passed  against  her 
qualifications.  Perhaps  this  condition  of  things  should  be  satisfactory, 
as  she  is  entitled,  of  course,  to  an  examination  in  any  other  town  where 
she  may  be  a  candidate  for  employment  as  an  instructress.  If,  however, 
she  is  still  desirous  to  act  as  a  teacher  in  the  town  of  Burns,  she  may 
present  herself  for  examination  before  Wm.  W.  Payne,  late  town  super- 
intendent of  Burns,  Samuel  W.  Swaine,  of  Swainsville,  and  any  other 
of  the  former  superintendents  of  Burns  whom  those  gentlemen  (who 
are  hereby  requested  to  act  in  the  premises)  may  select.  They  will, 
in  case  of  their  acceptance  of  this  commission,  appoint  a  time  and  place 
for  such  examination,  and  cause  reasonable  notice  thereof  to  be  given 
to  Ml".  Whitney,  that  he  may  attend  the  same,  if  so  disposed.  All  fur- 
ther directions  are  reserved  until  the  coming  in  of  the  report  of  such 
committee,  or  further  order.  * 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  December  7,  1855. 

[Digest.]  13 


98  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 


When  a  district  has  been  altered,  the  site  of  the  school-house  may  be  changed 
by  a  vote  of  the  majority  of  those  present  at  the  meeting. 

The  statute  confers  power  to  vote  a  tax  to  purchase  a  site  or  build  a  school-house 
at  any  meeting,  although  no  notice  may  have  been  given  of  such  intention. 

Due  notice  of  a  meeting  will  be  presumed,  unless  the  contrary  be  shown. 

A  special  meeting  of  Joint  District  No.  9,  of  Manheim,  Herkimer 
county,  and  Oppenheim,  Fulton  county,  was  held  December  19,  1854,  and 
a  vote  was  passed  to  change  the  site  of  the  school-house.  The  meeting 
then  adjourned  to  receive  propositions.  On  the  23d  day  of  June,  1855,  a 
new  site  was  designated,  and  at  a  subsequent  adjourned  meeting,  an 
adjournment  to  the  2d  Tuesday  of  October,  1856,  was  carried. 

The  trustees,  however,  called  a  special  meeting  for  December  4, 
1855,  at  which  a  tax  of  $450.00  was  raised  for  purchasing  the  new  site, 
$1000.00  for  building  a  new  school-house,  and  $200.00  for  wood-house 
and  privies.  The  certificate  of  the  town  superintendent,  that  $1200.00 
was  necessary  for  the  house  and  outhouses,  had  been  given. 

The  appellant  raised  the  following  points  : 

1.  That  the  school-house  site  was  illegally  changed,  no  consent  of  the 
town  superintendent  having  been  obtained. 

It  might  suffice  to  say  that  no  such  point  was  made  in  the  appeal ; 
but  it  is  conclusively  met  by  the  reply  of  the  trustees,  which  shows  that 
the  district  has  undergone  repeated  alterations  since  the  erection  of  the 
school-house.  No  consent  of  the  superintendent  was  necessary  to 
authorize  the  fixing  of  a  new  site  by  a  majority  of  the  votes  of  those 
present  and  voting. 

2.  That  a  meeting  which  had  under  consideration  the  same  matters 
as  those  brought  before  the  meeting  of  December  4,  1855,  having 
adjourned  to  a  future  day,  the  inhabitants  were  in  the  mean  time 
incompetent  to  act  upon  them. 

The  answer  is  this,  that  the  trustees  are  authorized  to  call  a  special 
meeting  "  whenever  they  shall  deem  it  necessary  and  proper."  No 
resolution  of  any  meeting  can  deprive  them  of  this  power.  The  inha- 
bitants assembled  under  such  call  are  then  "  lawfully  assembled."  And 
the  statute  confers  upon  them,  when  lawfully  assembled  at  any  district 
meeting,  the  power  to  vote  a  tax  for  the  purchase  of  a  site  and  for  the 
building  of  a  school-house,  and  the  necessary  appendages.  As  the 
statute  authorizes  such  a  vote,  and  also  a  vote  to  sell  a  former  site  (pro- 
vided only  that  the  site  shall  have  been  legally  changed  "  at  any  district 
meeting"),  it  clearly  dispenses  with  the  necessity  of  any  special  notice 
as  a  condition  precedent  of  its  jurisdiction.  It  would  be  another  and 
different  question,  if  there  were  any  pretense  that  the  voters  were 
actually  and  designedly  surprised  by  the  unexpected  introduction  of  so 
important  a  subject.  There  is  no  ground  for  such  an  allegation  in  this 
case. 

3.  The  appellant  objects,  that  it  does  not  appear  by  the  return  of^the 
district  clerk,  or  otherwise,  that  the  legal  voters  of  the  district,  or  any 
of  them,  were  duly  notified  of  such  meeting.  The  burden  of  proof  on 
this  point  rests  on  the  appellant.     The  presumption  always  is  that  public 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  99 

officers  have  done  their  duty.  This  presumption  is  supported  in  this 
case  by  the  express  statement  that  one  voter  received  no  notice,  for  it 
implies  that  no  other  failure  to  give  notice  could  be  alleged.  Those 
who  attended  certainly  had  notice,  and  the  omission  in  a  solitary  instance, 
is  not  averred  to  have  been  willful  or  fraudulent. 
The  proceedings  were  legal  and  regular. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  February  6,  1856. 

A  tax  by  installments  cannot  be  raised  for  any  other  purpose  than  "  for  building, 
hiring  or  purchasing  a  school-house,"  and  then  the  tax  cannot  be  raised  by 
installments,  unless  it  exceeds  $400.00. 

District  No.  3,  Berlin,  Rensselaer  county,  at  a  meeting  held  Decem- 
ber 20,  1855,  voted  to  repair  their  school-house,  build  privy  and  fence, 
and  move  the  house,  and  that  the  tax  for  such  purpose  should  be  raised 
by  two  annual  installments. 

The  law  does  not  permit  the  vote  of  a  tax  to  be  raised  by  installments, 
for  any  other  purpose  than  that  of  building,  hiring  or  purchasing  a 
school-house,  and  even  in  that  case  the  tax  must  not  be  raised  by  install- 
ments unless  it  exceeds  $400.00. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  February  9,  1856. 

A  vote  will  not  be  set  aside  because  of  illegal  votes,  when  they  do  not  affect  the 
result. 

At  the  election  of  a  trustee  in  District  No.  2,  Rochester,  Ulster 
county,  January  15,  1856,  four  illegal  votes  were  cast  for  the  successful 
candidate,  who,  however,  had  ten  majority. 

The  reception  of  the  four  illegal  votes  did  not  affect  the  result,  and 
the  appeal  must  be  dismissed. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  February  28,  1856. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  employ  a  competent  teacher,  and  have  a  school 

in  their  district  at  least  six  months  in  a  year. 
Trustees  should  not  be  teachers. 

The  trustees  of  District  No.  8,  Treston,  Chenango  county,  had,  for  a 
long  period  neglected  to  employ  a  teacher,  and  no  school  had  been  kept 
in  the  district,  except  for  a  few  days,  by  one  of  the  trustees.  They  were 
requested,  December  26,  1855,  by  all  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  dis- 
trict, to  employ  a  teacher,  but  had  neglected  to  do  so. 

An  appeal  from  their  neglect  was  taken  and  they  failed  to  make  «% 
legal  answer. 

It  is  a  matter  of  course,  under  the  circumstances,  that  the  appeal  shall 
be  sustained,  and  the  trustees  required  to  proceed  without  delay  to 
engage  a  teacher  who  shall  be  in  possession  of  a  proper  certificate  of 
qualification  before  commencing  his  labors. 

It  is  proper  to  remark,  that  while  the  employment  of  a  trustee  as 
teacher  is  nowhere  prohibited,  and  his  assumption  "of  the  task  of  instruct- 
ing the  school  may,  under  some  circumstances,  be  highly  praiseworthy,  yet 


100  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

the  practice  is  to  be  discouraged.  The  fact  that  the  teacher  is  one  of  the 
board  that  employs  him,  and  fixes  his  wages,  necessarily  gives  room  to 
a  suspicion  that  he  may  have  been  able  to  make  a  contract  more  advan- 
tageous to  himself  and  less  advantageous  to  the  district,  than  if  some 
third  party  had  been  employed.  Those  who  represent  the  public  should 
never  put  themselves  in  a  situation  where  their  private  interests  may 
conflict  with  those  of  their  constituents. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  March  18,  1856. 

Land  worked  under  a  contract,  by  which  the  lessee  is  to  share  in  the  produce 
thereof,  is  subject  to  taxation  in  the  district  where  it  is  situated. 

The  appellant  is  the  owner  of  lot  No.  34,  included  in  the  boundaries 
of  District  No.  9,  Wirt,  Allegany  county,  and  also  of  lot  No.  26,  which 
adjoins  it,  but  is  included  within  the  boundaries  of  District  No.  1,  and 
is  in  the  occupation  of  an  inhabitant  of  District  No.  1,  holding  under  a 
lease,  by  which  he  renders  a  share  of  the  produce  to  the  appellant. 
The  statute  expressly  provides  that  any  person  working  land  under  a 
contract  for  a  share  of  the  produce  of  such  land,  shall  be  deemed  the 
possessor,  so  far  as  to  render  him  liable  to  taxation  therefor,  in  the  dis- 
trict where  such  land  is  situate.  The  trustees  aver  that  the  existence 
oe  aiich  a  lease  never  came  to  their  knowledge  until  after  the  making 
out  of  the  tax  list.  This  is  doubtless  true,  but  they  were  bound  to  know 
the  limits  of  their  own  district,  and  were  bound  at  their  peril  not  to 
impose  a  tax  upon  any  one,  in  respect  to  land  outside  of  their  limits, 
unless  it  was  in  his  actual  possession,  constituting  a  part  of  real  pro- 
perty "partly  within  such  district  and  partly  in  an  adjoining  district." 

It  is  an  anomaly  that  land  lying  in  one  district  should,  under  any 
circumstances,  be  withdrawn  from  its  liability  to  support  the  public 
burdens  of  such  district,  and  made  to  contribute  to  those  of  another  in 
which  the  owner  mny  reside.  The  law  is  to  be  so  construed  as  to  restrict 
such  cases  within  the  narrowest  possible  limits. 

The  appeal  is  therefore  sustained.  The  trustees  must  correct  theii 
tax  list,  by  excluding  therefrom  the  valuation  of  lot  No.  26,  and  by 
assessing  so  much  of  the  tax  as  is  imposed  upon  the  appellant,  by  reason 
of  his  ownership  of  such  lot,  on  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district, 
in  proportion  to  their  respective  valuations. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  May  20,  1856. 

Children  of  non-residents  may  be  admitted  to  the  district  school  upon  such  terms 
as  may  be  agreed  upon  between  their  parents  or  guardians  and  the  trustees. 

The  contract  for  admission  should  be  in  writing,  and  the  payment  of  tuition 
should  be  exacted  in  advance. 

Joseph  E.  Walton,  an  inhabitant  of  District  No.  9,  Colesville,  Broome 
county,  applied  to  one  of  the  trustees  of  District  No.  4,  in  the  same 
town,  and  received  permission  from  him  to  send  his  children  to  their 
school,  for  the  term  commencing  May,  1 855,  and  ending  March,  1 856,  "on 
the  same  conditions  as  though  he  had  been  a  resident  of  said  District 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  101 

No.  4,  to  wit :  He  was  to  furnish  his  quota  of  fuel,  and  enjoy  the  benefit 
of  the  public  money  in  said  district."  The  children  attended  during 
the  whole  term  without  objection  from  either  of  the  other  trustees,  or 
from  any  inhabitant  of  said  District  No.  4,  and  the  appellant  furnished 
his  quota  of  fuel.  The  trustee  who  gave  the  permission  having  removed 
from  the  district,  and  the  vacancy  being  filled  by  an  election,  the  board, 
as  now  constituted,  "refused  to  allow  him  to  participate  in  the  benefits 
of  the  public  money."  The  appellant  asks  the  interposition  of  this 
department  in  his  behalf,  and  that  the  trustees  may  be  directed  to  carry 
such  agreement  into  effect,  "by  allowing  me  to  participate  in  the  benefits 
of  the  public  money  applicable  to  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages." 

Schools  are  provided  primarily  for  the  children  resident  in  the  district. 
The  statute  declares  that  they  are  free  to  all  residents  over  five  and 
under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  "as  thereinafter  provided,"  that  is  to  say, 
free  as  far  as  the  right  to  attend  them  is  concerned,  subject  to  the  lia- 
bility to  contribute  by  rate  bill  as  provided  in  §  6,  to  the  payment  of 
any  balance  of  teachers'  wages,  after  the  application  "of  the  amount 
apportioned  to  such  district  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  other 
jmblic  moneys  belonging  to  the  district  applicable  to  the  payment  of 
teachers'  wages."  This  is  the  only  provision  in  the  act  defining  or 
limiting  the  freedom  guaranteed  to  persons  residing  in  the  district.  The 
two  provisions  must  be  regarded  as  co-extensive,  and  embracing  only  the 
same  class  of  persons.  It  follows  that  residents,  and  none  other  than 
residents,  are  the  subjects  of  a  rate  bill. 

It  is  to  be  remarked  that  the  sixth  section  discriminates  between  the 
amount  apportioned  to  the  district  by  the  provisions  of  the  act — that  is, 
the  money  derived  from  the  state  treasury,  to  which  in  common  par- 
lance the  meaning  of  the  words  "public  moneys"  is  restricted — and 
"other  public  moneys  belonging  to  the  district  applicable  to  the  pay- 
ment of  teachers'  wages."  These  words  are  broad  enough  to  include, 
and  are  to  be  construed  as  including,  not  only  the  revenues  of  any 
permanent  local  funds,  but  any  sums  received  for  tuition  from  persons 
not  liable  to  a  rate  bill.  The  latter  are  to  be  applied  in  reduction  of 
the  teachers'  wages,  before  the  amount  can  be  ascertained  for  which  a 
rate  bill  must  be  made  upon  the  residents  of  the  district.  It  follows, 
then,  that  the  appellant  is  not  subject  to  a  rate  bill,  and,  independent 
of  an  express  contract,  can  have  no  interest  in  the  question,  whether 
the  public  money  apportioned  to  a  district  to  which  he  does  not  belong 
is  large  or  small. 

The  first  section  of  the  act  of  April  12,  1851,  provides  that  "persons 
not  resident  of  a  district  may  be  admitted  into  the  schools  kept  therein, 
with  the  approbation  in  writing  of  the  trustees  thereof  or  a  majority 
of  them."  This  provision  is  only  declaratory  of  the  law,  as  previously 
understood  and  expounded  by  this  department.  It  is  doubtless  true 
that  a  teacher  would  be  at  liberty  to  exclude  a  pupil  not  residing  in  the 
district,  until  the  written  evidence  of  the  assent  of  a  majority  of  the 
trustees  should  be  presented.  As  a  matter  of  reasonable  prudence, 
such  permission  ought  undoubtedly  to  be  put  into  writing,  and  should 
declare  precisely  the  terms  upon  which  it  is  granted. 


102  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

In  this  case,  however,  no  question  arises  from  the  absence  of  a  written 
permission,  because  in  the  first  place,  the  children  were  not  excluded, 
and  in  the  second,  the  terms  of  the  agreement  are  admitted  by  both 
sides.  It  was  the  business  of  the  trustees,  if  they  disapproved  the 
contract  made  by  one  of  their  number,  to  have  excluded  the  children 
absolutely,  or  to  have  made  a  new  contract  as  to  the  amount  to  be  paid 
for  their  tuition.  By  their  acquiescence  and  inaction  they  must  be 
deemed  to  have  known  and  ratified  the  arrangement  made  by  their 
colleague,  especially  as  they  have  received  money,  or  its  equivalent  for 
fuel,  in  pursuance  of  that  contract. 

The  proper  mode  for  them  would  have  been  to  have  assented  to  the 
continuance  of  the  children  in  school,  upon  the  appellant  entering  into 
a  written  agreement  to  pay  a  definite  sum  in  dollars  and  cents  for  their 
tuition ;  or,  what  is  more  proper,  paying  it  in  advance,  that  it  might 
become  at  once  and  beyond  contingency  a  part  of  "the  public  moneys 
belonging  to  the  district."  They  could,  and  in  strictness  should,  have 
fixed  that  sum  without  regard  to  the  attendance  or  non-attendance  of 
the  children.  They  would  have  been  well  warranted  in  making  it 
somewhat  larger  than  the  amount  which  was  expected  to  be  required 
from  residents.  Public  policy  demands  that  a  parent  should  not  be 
permitted  to  withdraw  his  children  from  contributing  to  the  support  of 
the  school  in  his  own  district,  without  such  strong  motives  as  may 
reconcile  him  to  an  increased  expense  for  their  tuition.  If  he  choose 
to  send  to  what,  as  far  as  he  is  concerned,  is  a  private  school,  he  cannot 
complain  if  he  is  made  to  pay  precisely  as  if  he  received  no  aid  what- 
ever from  the  public  funds. 

In  this  case  the  making  out  of  the  rate  bill  is  to  be  regarded  simply 
as  a  mode  of  computing  the  amount  which  the  appellant  has  agreed  to 
pay ;  and  he  must  pay  it,  not  because  the  trustees  have  authority  to 
make  a  rate  bill  against  him,  but  because  he  has  agreed  to  pay  what- 
ever, upon  that  mode  of  computation,  may  be  found  to  be  due. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  May  23,  1856. 

The  election  of  a  trustee  at  an  adjourned  meeting:  valid. 

If  a  trustee  renders  liis  annual  account  to  an  adjourned  annual  meeting,  he  will 
not  be  removed  because  it  is  unsatisfactory. 

Mr.  Isaac  Tracy,  one  of  the  trustees  of  District  No.  5,  Allen,  Alle- 
gany county,  omitted  to  make  his  annual  report  to  the  annual  meeting, 
October  1,  1855,  but  claims  that  one  was  submitted  and  made  by  the 
clerk  at  an  adjourned  meeting,  October  2. 

One  of  the  trustees  elected  at  the  first  meeting  refused  to  serve,  and 
at  the  adjourned  meeting  another  was  elected  to  fill  the  vacancy. 

Mr.  Tracy  will  not  be  removed  because  his  account  was  not  satisfactory. 
lie  is  liable  to  a  suit,  hereafter,  for  any  money  that  can  be  shown  by 
that  account,  or  otherwise,  to  have  come  into  his  hands,  and  which  he 
cannot  prove  to  have  been  legally  expended  or  paid  to  a  colleague  or 
successor  authorized  to  receive  it.  If,  on  the  other  hand,  he  entirely 
failed  to  render  any  account,  he  is  liable  to  a  penalty  of  $25.00,  in 
addition  to  a  judgment  for  any  moneys  proved  to  be  in  his  hands. 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  103 

The  election  of  a  trustee  on  the  2d  clay  of  October,  must  be  held  to 
have  been  valid  and  regular.  Admitting  that  the  meeting  the  previous 
evening  adourned  for  the  sole  purpose  of  having  the  annual  account  of 
the  trustees  submitted,  the  adjourned  meeting  was  nevertheless  compe- 
tent to  fill  any  vacancy  which  might  then  exist  in  district  offices.  Such 
a  vacancy  was  created  by  the  refusal  of  Mr.  Lincoln  to  serve. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  Dep.  Supt.,  May  31,  1856. 

When  the  time  for  annual  meeting  is  not  fixed,  a  notice  by  the  trustees  speci- 
fying a  day  for  the  annual  meeting  is  sufficient,  and  the  proceedings  at 
such  meeting  are  legal. 

It  is  lawful  at  any  district  meeting  to  pass  a  resolution,  with  the  consent  of  the 
town  superintendent  (school  commissioner),  designating  an  additional  site, 
and  raising  a  tax  to  purchase  it. 

The  consent  of  the  commissioner  need  not  be  in  writing. 

At  a  district  meeting  held  in  District  No.  8,  Moreau,  Saratoga  county, 
held  October  1, 1855,  a  tax  of  $125.00  was  voted  to  purchase  an  additional 
site  and  to  build  a  school-house  thereon,  and  also  of  $12.00  for  repairs  of 
the  old  school-house,  the  assent  of  the  town  superintendent  to  the 
designation  of  the  additional  site  having  been  obtained.  At  this  meeting 
the  appellant  was  elected  trustee. 

On  the  29th  day  of  October  the  appellant  presented  to  his  colleagues 
a  tax  list  for  the  sums  above  mentioned,  and  requested  them  to  meet 
with  him  for  the  purpose  of  examining  and  correcting  the  list,  if  cor- 
rections were  necessary,  and  to  unite  with  him  in  signing  the  warrant. 
From  their  refusal  to  meet  with  him  or  to  execute  the  warrant  this 
appeal  is  brought. 

On  the  part  of  the  respondents  it  is  urged  that  the  annual  meeting 
of  1854,  failed  to  adjourn  to  any  particular  time  and  place,  and  that 
the  notice  for  a  meeting  did  not  specify  the  objects  for  which  it  was 
called. 

If  the  time  of  the  annual  meeting  in  1855  was  not  fixed  at  the 
meeting  of  1854  (on  which  the  evidence  is  conflicting),  the  trustees 
had  the  right  to  "  appoint  a  clay  for  the  holding  of  the  annual  meeting," 
and  this  they  did  by  subscribing  a  notice  designating  the  1st  of  October, 
1855,  as  such  day  and  causing  the  same  to  be  posted.  It  is  of  no 
consequence  that  they  may  have  supposed  they  were  only  specifying 
the  day  to  which  the  meeting  stood  adjourned.  The  fact  that  they 
so  supposed,  and  that  it  was  the  day  on  which  the  inhabitants  had  for 
years  been  accustomed  to  hold  their  annual  meeting,  only  proves  that 
the  day  appointed  was  the  precise  one  on  which  the  inhabitants  were 
prepared  to  expect  their  annual  assemblage,  and  upon  which  they  were 
the  least  likely  to  absent  themselves  from  a  want  of  notice. 

If  an  appeal  had  been  taken  from  the  proceedings  of  October  1,  in 
proper  time,  the  department  would  have  been  disposed  to  give  con- 
siderable weight  to  the  allegation  that  a  portion  of  the  voters  had  been 
surprised,  and  might  have  ordered  a  new  meeting,  to  reconsider  the  subject 
notwithstanding  those  proceedings  were  entirely  legal.  It  would  have 
done  this  in  the  hope  that  those  proceedings  might  have  been  affirmed 


104  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

under  circumstances  depriving  every  tax  payer  of  any  ground  for  dis- 
satisfaction. 

When,  however,  those  who  objected  to  the  proceedings  instead  of 
taking  active  measures  to  set  them  aside,  wait  till  thirty  days,  and  then 
rest  upon  the  illegality  of  the  meeting,  they  must  be  confined  to  the 
issue  thus  made. 

As  to  the  other  question,  regarding  the  site,  the  persons  in  favor  of 
such  new  site,  were  under  no  obligations  to  give  notice  of  their  design 
to  present  such  proposition,  nor  were  they  bound  to  consult  the  trustees 
in  respect  to  it.  Any  person  at  any  meeting  lawfully  assembled,  had 
the  right,  without  previous  consultation  with  anybody,  to  propose  such 
resolutions,  and  the  meeting  "by  a  majority  of  the  votes  of  those 
present,"  and  with  the  consent  of  the  town  superintendent,  could  lawfully 
designate  an  additional  site,  and  lay  a  tax  to  purchase  the  same,  and  to 
build  a  house  upon  it. 

The  consent  of  the  town  superintendent  is  not  required  to  be  in 
writing,  and  there  is  no  pretense  in  this  case  that  he  did  not  consent  in 
fact.  Indeed  it  appears  from  the  papers  that  he  had  taken  an  active 
part  in  procuring  a  deed  of  the  additional  site,  to  be  executed  to  the 
trustees  of  the  district  before  the  1st  of  October.  This  of  itself  proves 
his  consent,  and  is  sufficient  to  support  the  vote,  although  it  was  very 
proper  to  put  such  consent  in  writing  as  was  subsequently  done. 

The  respondents  are  required  to  meet  with  the  appellant  and  sign 
the  tax  list  and  warrant. 

Per  V.  M.-Rice,  June  1,  1856. 

The  assessment  roll  of  a  town,  as  revised  by  the  assessors  and  delivered  to  tho 
supervisors,  is  complete  so  far  as  to  bind  the  trustees  in  making  out  a  tax 
list. 

The  trustees  of  Joint  District  No.  1,  Gates  and  Chili,  Monroe  county, 
in  making  a  tax  list  on  the  15th  day  of  October,  1855,  adopted  the 
valuations  of  the  town  assessment  rolls  for  1854.  The  rolls  for  1855 
had  not  then  been  revised  by  the  supervisors,  and  as  those  of  the  two 
towns  differed  very  materially  in  their  valuations  of  real  estate,  the 
trustees  considered  it  unjust  to  follow  them  until  such  revision.  In  this 
the  trustees  erred,  and  their  tax  list  is  consequently  erroneous.  It  has 
been  repeatedly  decided  by  this  department,  and  also  by  the  supreme 
court,  that  when  the  assessment  roll  has  been  revised  by  the  assessors 
and  delivered  to  the  supervisors,  it  becomes  so  far  complete  as  to  bind 
the  trustees. 

If  the  trustees  of  a  joint  district  regard  the  valuations  of  the  two  town 
assessment  rolls  as  not  substantially  just,  as  compared  with  each  other 
so  far  as  such  district  is  concerned,  they  have  the  right  to  apply  to  the 
supervisors  of  the  towns,  parts  of  which  are  embraced  within  their 
school  district,  to  determine  the  relative  proportion  of  taxes  that  ought 
to  be  assessed  upon  the  real  property  of  the  parts  of  such  district  so 
lying  in  different  towns.   (Sec.  72,  chap.  480,  Laws  of  1847.) 


DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS.  105 

They  can  resort  to  this  remedy  as  well  after  as  before  the  hoard  of 
supervisors  has  revised  and  equalized  the  town  assessment  rolls. 

The  appeal  is  sustained,  and  the  trustees  authorized  to  amend  their 
tax  list,  in  accordance  with  law. 

Per  E.  P.  Smith,  June  4,  1856. 

Exemptions  must  be  collected  by  tax  and  not  by  rate  bill. 

John  Oliver  appeals  from  a  rate  bill  made  by  the  trustees  of  District 
No.  6,  Halfmoon,  Saratoga  county. 

On  the  15th  day  of  April,  1855,  the  trustees  were  indebted  to  the 
teacher,  for  the  term  then  ending,  $56.00.  The  amount  of  public  money 
applicable  to  such  term,  was  $29.72,  leaving  a  balance  of  $36.28  to  be 
collected  by  rate  bill.  Instead  of  compelling  the  teacher  to  wait  for  the 
collection  of  the  rate  bill,  they  drew  an  order  on  the  town  superintendent 
for  the  whole  amount  of  public  money  in  his  hands,  $47.86.  In  other 
words,  they  advanced  to  the  teacher  $18.14  out  of  the  public  money 
applicable  to  the'  summer  term,  and  replaced  it  by  the  rate  bill,  when 
collected.  If  there  is  anything  objectionable  in  this  measure,  which  it 
is  not  intended  to  intimate,  Mr.  Oliver  is  estopped  from  taking  the  objec- 
tion, inasmuch  as  he  shows  that  he  himself  (being  then  a  trustee,)  signed 
the  order. 

On  the  15th  of  April,  1856,  the  trustees  were  indebted  to  their 
teacher  $72.00,  to  pay  which  they  apply,  1st,  the  public  money  of 
1855,  restored  by  the  collection  of  the  rate  bill,  $18.14;  2d,  $10.62 
(out  of  $49.22,)  of  the  public  money  of  the  present  year,  and  for  the 
residue,  $43.24,  they  have  made  out  a  rate  bill  and  issued  a  warrant. 

The  replication  of  the  appellant  shows  that  the  trustees  have  actually 
drawn  an  order  on  the  town  superintendent  for  $15.00,  instead  of  $10.62. 
The  difference  corresponds  precisely  with  the  amount  of  exemptions  in 
the  last  and  present  rate  bills,  which  should  be  raised  by  tax. 

There  is  no  authority  to  collect  it  by  rate  bill,  nor  should  the  trustees 
obtain  an  advance  of  it  from  the  public  money,  through  an  order  drawn 
professedly  for  teachers'  wages.  They  are,  therefore,  directed  to  deduct 
the  sum  of  $5.12  ratably  from  the  amount  charged  to  each  person 
not  exempted  in  the  rate  bill. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  June  13,  1856. 

Any  district  meeting  may  elect  an  officer  to  fill  an  existing  vacancy,  although 
thirty  days  may  have  elapsed  since  its  occurrence. 

The  appeal  was  served  June  11,  1856,  upon  R.  S.  Scott,  town  super- 
intendent, and  no  answer  has  been  made.  It  appears  that  Alexander 
Fenton,  a  trustee  in  Joint  District  No.  9,  in  Middletown  and  Shandaken, 
removed  therefrom  about  the  1st  of  April,  1856.  On  the  28th  day 
of  May,  1856,  a  special  meeting  was  held  at  which  William  Jones  was 
chosen  to  fill  the  vacancy.  The  town  superintendent,  with  a  full  know- 
ledge of  such  election,  appointed  John  Newton  to  fill  the  vacancy, 
caused  by  the  removal  of  Fenton. 

[Digest.]  14 


10G  DIGEST  OF  DECISIONS. 

The  inhabitants,  when  lawfully  assembled  at  any  district  meeting;, 
may  choose  district  officers  to  fill  vacancies.  (§  62,  chap.  480,  Laws 
of  1847.) 

By  §  77,  it  is  provided  that  in  case  a  vacancy  shall  not  be  supplied 
by  a  district  meeting  within  one  month  thereafter,  the  superintendent 
of  the  town  may  appoint  any  person  residing  in  such  district  to  supply 
such  vacancy.  This  provision  does  not,  however,  in  any  way  affect  the 
right  of  the  district  to  supply  such  vacancy  by  election,  at  any  period 
prior  to  an  appointment  made  by  the  town  superintendent. 

In  this  case  Mr.  William  Jones  having  been  elected  at  a  special 
meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district,  previous  to  the  appointment 
of  Mr.  Newton,  the  action  must  be  considered  legal. 

The  crder  of  the  town  superintendent  of  District  No.  9,  Middletown 
and  Shandaken,  is  therefore  void. 

Per  V.  M.  Rice,  July  31,  1856. 


INTRODUCTORY 


LAWS  IN  RELATION  TO  SCHOOLS. 


By  chap.  36  of  the  Laws  of  1856,  the  legislature  directed  a  revised 
edition  of  the  laws  in  relation  to  schools  to  be  prepared,  and  a  copy  to 
be  furnished  to  each  school  district  library  of  this  state,  in  the  same 
volume  with  a  Digest  of  Decisions  of  the  Superintendents  of  Common 
Schools,  the  preparation  of  which  had  been  authorized  by  chap.  397  of 
the  Laws  of  1854.  The  law  directs  this  volume  to  be  entitled  the 
"  Code  of  Public  Instruction,"  and  that  it  be  prepared,  printed  and  dis- 
tributed, under  the  direct;on  of  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction. 

No  particular  method  of  arranging  or  numbering  the  statutes  having 
been  prescribed,  the  plan  has  been  to  collect  together  those  sections 
which  related  to  the  same  subject,  without  strict  regard  to  the  place 
they  may  occupy  in  the  Session  Lawsr  but  with  such  a  general  adher- 
ence to  the  arrangement  of  the  revision  of  the  school  laws,  in  1847,  as 
was  consistent  with  that  leading  purpose.  The  sections  are  numbered 
in  the  order  which  they  assume  under  this  arrangement ;  and,  at  the  end 
of  each  section,  inclosed  within  brackets,  a  reference  is  given  to  the 
original  statute  from  which  it  was  taken,  indicating  the  original  number 
of  the  section,  and  also  to  every  subsequent  statute  by  which  it  has 
been  amended  or  modified. 

No  liberty  has  been  taken  with  the  text  of  the  statutes,  but  they  have 
been  printed  precisely  in  the  words  of  their  enactment,  either  as  originally 
passed  or  as  amended  by  the  legislature ;  except  that  where  subsequent 
statutes  have  rendered  it  necessary  to  substitute  other  words  for  those 
contained  in  the  law  —  as  school  commissioner  or  supervisor,  in  the 
place  of  town  superintendent — the  words  thus  substituted  have  been 
inclosed  in  brackets,  and  the  authority  for  the  interpolation  has  been 


108  INTRODUCTORY  TO  THE  LAWS. 

cited  at  the  end  of  the  section  or  in  the  comment  which  follows  it. 
The  means  are  thus  furnished  to  the  reader  of  distinguishing  between 
the  authentic  language  of  the  legislature  and  the  opinion  of  the  compiler 
as  to  the  effect  of  its  enactments. 

It  was  necessary  to  study  the  utmost  brevity  in  the  comments  upon 
the  various  sections.  An  unavoidable  result  will  be,  that  to  the  careless 
reader  many  questions  may  appear  to  have  been  overlooked,  for  which 
an  answer  will  be  found  upon  more  deliberate  examination.  In  order 
to  reach  the  meaning  of  a  statute,  every  word  must  be  pondered,  as  if 
special  attention  were  invited  to  it  by  the  display  of  italic  type,  and  by 
the  warning  that  the  word  could  not  be  omitted,  or  any  other  word 
whatever  substituted  in  its  place,  without  perverting  the  intention  of  the 
law  makers.  It  would  be  presumptuous  to  ask  the  same  minute  con- 
sideration of  the  comments  ;  but  the  school  officers,  for  whose  instruction 
they  were  prepared,  may  be  assured  that  a  laborious  effort  has  been 
made  to  anticipate  every  question  they  can  have  occasion  to  ask,  and  to 
furnish  all  the  information  that  is  practicable. 

There  are  occasional  references,  in  the  comments,  to  the  volume  of 
Decisions  of  the  State  Superintendents,  published  in  183*7  by  Superin- 
tendent Dix,  under  the  authority  of  the  legislature.  It  is  cited  as 
Com.  School  Dec.  The  references  to  judicial  decisions  are  for  the 
the  most  part  to  those  made  by  the  courts  of  this  state.  Where  the 
reports  of  other  states  or  of  England  are  cited,  the  fact  is  usually  indi- 
cated by  giving  the  abbreviation  for  the  name  of  the  state,  with  that  of 
the  reporter. 


STATUTES  RELATING  TO  COMMON  SCHOOLS. 


OF  THE  POWERS  AND  DUTIES  OF  THE  SUPERINTENDENT 
OF  PUBLIC  INSTRUCTION. 

No.  1.  There  shall  be  chosen  by  joint  ballot  of  the  senate 
and  assembly,  on  the  first  Tuesday  in  April  next,  and  every 
third  year  thereafter,  and  as  often  as  a  vacancy  shall  occur  in 
said  office,  a  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  who 
shall  hold  his  office  for  three  years,  and  shall  be  invested  with 
all  the  powers,  perform  all  the  duties,  and  be  subject  to  all 
the  responsibilities  now  conferred  or  imposed  by  law  upon 
the  Secretary  of  State  in  his  capacity  of  Superintendent 
of  Common  Schools.  (  Sec.  1,  chap.  97  of  1854,  passed  March 
30,  1854.) 

No.  2.  The  superintendent,  so  appointed,  shall  enter  imme- 
diately upon  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  and  shall  be  assigned 
suitable  and  convenient  rooms  in  the  state  hall,  to  which  all 
books,  papers  and  documents  now  in  the  office  of  the  Secre- 
tary of  State,  and  pertaining  to  the  common  school  depart- 
ment, shall  be  transferred.  He  shall  receive  an  annual  salary 
of  two  thousand  five  hundred  dollars,  payable  quarterly  by 
the  treasurer  on  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller,  and  shall 
have  power  to  appoint  a  deputy  and  as  many  clerks,  not 
exceeding  three,  as  he  may  deem  necessary  for  the  transaction 
of  the  business  of  the  department ;  but  the  compensation  of 
such  deputy  and  clerks  shall  not  exceed  three  thousand  dollars 
in  any  one  year,  and  shall  be  payable  monthly  by  the  treasurer 
on  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller  and  the  certificate  of  the 
superintendent.  (Sec.  2,  chap.  97  of  1854.) 


110  POWERS  AND  DUTIES 

No.  3.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  State  Superintendent,  as 
soon  as  may  be  practicable  alter  the  commencement  of  his 
official  term,  to  devise  a  seal,  with  suitable  inscriptions  and 
device,  a  description  of  which,  together  with  an  impression 
thereof,  shall  be  filed  in  the  office  of  the  Secretary  of  State, 
which  shall  thereafter  be  the  official  seal  of  the  said  superin- 
tendent, and  such  seal  may  be  renewed  from  time  to  time,  as 
often  as  may  be  necessary ;  copies  of  all  papers  deposited  or 
filed  in  the  office  of  said  superintendent,  and  all  acts,  orders 
and  decisions  made  by  him,  may  be  authenticated  under  such 
seal,  and  when  so  authenticated,  shall  be  evidence  equally 
and  in  like  manner  with  the  original.  (Sec.  3,  chap.  97  of 
1854.) 

Chap.  129  of  1838  provides  that  no  "record,  whereof  a  transcript 
duly  certified  may  by  law  be  read  in  evidence,  shall  be  removed  by 
virtue  of  any  subpoena  duces  tecum  from  the  proper  office  in  which 
such   record   shall   be   kept,  *  *  *  *  unless   by 

order  of  some  court  of  record,  made  in  open  court,  and  entered  in  the 
minutes  thereof,  which  order  shall  specify  that  the  production  of  such 
record  instead  of  such  transcript  is  necessary." 

The  Revised  Statutes,  sec.  59,  title  3,  chap.  7,  part  3,  provide  that 
"whenever  a  certified  copy  of  any  affidavit,  record,  document  or  other 
paper  is  declared  by  law  to  be  evidence,  such  copy  shall  be  certified,  by 
the  clerk  or  officer  in  whose  custody  the  same  is  required  by  law  to  be, 
to  have  been  compared  by  him  with  the  original,  and  to  be  a  correct 
transcript  therefrom  and  of  the  whole  of  such  original ;  and  if  such 
officer  have  any  official  seal  by  law,  such  certificate  shall  be  attested  by 
such  seal."  The  61st  section  of  the  same  title  provides  that  "  in  all 
cases,  where  the  seal  of  any  court  or  of  any  public  officer  shall  be  author- 
ized or  required  by  law,  the  same  may  be  affixed  by  making  an  impres- 
sion directly  on  the  paper,  which  shall  be  as  valid  as  if  made  on  a  wafer 
or  on  wax." 

No.  4.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  State  Superintendent  to 
visit,  as  often  as  may  be  practicable,  such  and  so  many  of  the 
common  schools,  academies  and  other  literary  institutions  of 
the  state  as  he  may  deem  expedient,  to  inquire  into  the  course 
of  instruction,  management  and  discipline  of  such  institutions, 
and  to  report  the  results  of  such  visitation  and  inspection 
annually  to  the  legislature,   with  such  recommendations  and 


OF  STATE  SUPERINTENDENT.  Ill 

suggestions  as  he  may  deem   suitable.     ( Sec.  4.  chap.  97  of 
1854.) 

The  Revised  Statutes,  sec.  1,  title  2,  chap.  15,  part  1,  declared  it  the 
duty  of  the  superintendent  of  common  schools  "  to  prepare  and  submit 
an  annual  report  to  the  legislature,  containing, 

1.  A  statement  of  the  condition  of  the  common  schools  of  the  state. 

2.  Estimates  and  accounts  of  expenditures  of  the  school  moneys. 

3.  Plans  for  the  improvement  and  management  of  the  common  school 
fund,  and  for  the  better  organization  of  the  common  schools  ;  and 

4.  All  such  matters  relating  to  his  office  and  to  the  common  schools 
as  he  shall  deem  expedient  to  communicate. 

Chap.  350  of  184V,  in  relation  to  reports  of  state  officers,  requires 
them  (including  the  superintendent  of  common  schools)  "  to  complete 
their  several  annual  reports  for  the  previous  fiscal  year,  before  the  expi- 
ration of  the  current  calendar  year,  and  cause  the  same  to  be  presented 
to  the  legislature  immediately  after  the  commencement  of  its  next 
annual  session."  It  also  requires  them  to  embrace  in  said  annual 
reports  a  true  account,  so  far  as  the  same  is  practicable,  of  the  funds 
and  accounts  of  which  each  of  said  officers  is  in  charge,  to  the  termi- 
nation of  the  current  calendar  year." 

No.  5.  The  State  Superintendent  shall  be,  cx-officio,  a  mem- 
ber of  the  board  of  regents  of  the  university,  and  chairman 
of  the  executive  committee  of  the  board  of  regents  of  the 
State  Normal  School.     ( Sec.  5,  chap.  97  of  1854.) 

No.  6.  The  superintendent  of  [Public  Instruction]  may 
appoint  such  and  so  many  persons  as  he  shall  from  time  to 
time  deem  necessary,  to  visit  and  examine  into  the  condition 
of  the  common  schools  in  the  county  where  such  persons 
may  reside,  and  report  to  the  superintendent  on  all  such  mat- 
ters relating  to  the  condition  of  such  schools,  and  the  means 
of  improving  them,  as  he  shall  prescribe  ;  but  no  allowance 
or  compensation  shall  be  made  to  the  said  visitors  for  such 
services.  (Sec.  8,  chap.  330  of  1839.  The  words  "public 
instruction"  substituted  for  "  common  schools,  in  conformity  to  No. 
1  of  this  compilation. ) 

No.  7.  The  Superintendent  of  [Public  Instruction],  on  such 
evidence  as  may  be  satisfactory  to  him,  may  grant  certificates 
of  qualification,  under  his  hand  and  seal  of  office,  which  shall 


112  POWERS  AND  DUTIES 

be  evidence  that  the  holder  of  such  certificate  is  well  quali- 
fied in  respect  to  moral  character,  learning  and  ability  to  teach 
any  district  school  within  this  state,  which  certificate  shall  be 
valid  until  duly  revoked  by  the  superintendent.  ( Sec.  10, 
chap.  133  of  1843.  The  words  "public  instniction"  substituted 
for  "  common  schools"  in  conformity  to  No.  1  of  this  compilation.) 

No.  8.  Whenever  it  shall  be  satisfactorily  proven  to  the 
State  Superintendent  that  any  county  or  town  superintendent 
or  other  school  officer  has  embezzled  the  public  money,  or  any 
money  coming  into  his  hands  for  school  purposes,  or  has  been 
guilty  of  the  willful  violation  of  any  law  or  neglect  of  any 
duty,  or  of  disobeying  any  decision,  order  or  regulation  of 
the  Department  of  [Public  Instruction],  the  State  Superin- 
tendent is  hereby  authorized  to  remove  such  officer  from  such 
office,  by  an  order  under  the  seal  of  office  of  the  [Superin- 
tendent of  Public  Instruction].  (Sec.  15,  chap.  382  o/"1849, 
substituting  "public  instruction" for  "common  schools"  in  confor- 
mity to  No.  1,  and  "  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction''''  for 
"secretary  of  state"  in  conformity  to  No.  3  of  this  compilation.) 

When  it  becomes  necessary  to  ask  the  removal  of  a  school  officer, 
under  the  foregoing  section,  the  following  practice  must  be  pursued  : 
An  affidavit  or  affidavits  must  be  prepared  and  duly  verified  before  some 
officer  authorized  to  administer  oaths,  charging  him  with  one  or  more 
of  the  offenses  of  which  he  is  supposed  to  have  been  guilty,  and  which 
are  above  enumerated,  as  with  having  "  embezzled  money  coming  to 
his  hands  for  school  purposes,"  or  with  the  willful  neglect  of  some 
specified  duty,  or  with  disobeying  some  decision  or  order  of  the  Depart- 
ment of  Public  Instruction,  setting  out  the  date  of  such  order  and  its 
requisition  in  words  or  in  substance.  The  affidavit,  after  distinctly 
stating  the  charge,  should  proceed  with  a  specification  of  the  facts  by 
which  it  is  established,  which  must  be  set  forth  with  such  certainty  as 
to  time,  place,  &c,  as  to  furnish  the  officer  with  precise  information  as 
to  what  he  is  expected  to  meet,  and  to  enable  him  to  look  for  repelling 
testimony.  After  being  verified,  a  copy  of  the  affidavits,  including  the 
jurat  or  certificate  of  the  officer  administering  the  oath,  must  be  served 
upon  the  officer  whose  removal  is  sought,  together  with  a  notice  of  the 
application,  which  may  be  substantially  in  the  following  form  : 

Sir — Take  notice  that  the  affidavits,  with  copies  of  which  you  are 
herewith  served,  will  be  presented  to  the  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction    at   Albany,    and   application    thereupon    made    for    your 


OF  STATE  SUPERINTENDENT.  113 

removal  from  the  office  of  trustee  of  Joint  District  No.  ,  of  Shan- 
daken,  in  Delaware  county,  and  Denning,  in  Ulster  county ;  and  that 
you  are  required  to  transmit  your  answer  to  such  application,  duly  veri- 
fied, to  the  Department  of  Public  Instruction  within  ten  days  after  the 
service  hereof,  or  the  charges  contained  in  such  affidavits  will  be  deemed 
to  be  admitted  by  you. 

Your  obt.  servt., 

A.  B.  (Post-Office  Address), 

Port  Jervis,  Delaware  Co. 

A  copy  of  this  notice,  together  with  an  affidavit  proving  the  service 
thereof  and  of  the  affidavits  therein  referred  to,  and  the  date  and  man- 
ner of  such  service,  must  be  transmitted,  with  the  original  affidavits  to 
the  Department  of  Public  Instruction.  No  fact,  although  otherwise' 
known  to  the  department,  will  be  taken  into  consideration,  nor  will  any 
paper  be  read  or  referred  to,  in  disposing  of  the  case,  unless  evidence  is 
furnished  that  a  copy  of  such  paper  has  been  served  upon  the  party 
against  whom  the  complaint  is  made.  He  cannot  be  prejudiced  by 
any  statement  which  he  has  not  been  called  upon  to  answer. 

The  form  of  the  notice  above  given  indicates  the  course  of  the 
respondent.  He  is  to  transmit  his  sworn  answer,  together  with  the 
affidavits  of  other  persons,  if  he  deems  them  necessary,  to  the  depart- 
ment within  ten  days.  If  for  any  reason,  as  the  absence  of  material 
witnesses,  he  is  unable  to  complete  his  defense  in  that  time,  he  should 
before  its  expiration  transmit  his  own  answer  duly  verified,  with  a  state- 
ment, under  oath,  of  the  facts  which  render  it  necessary  that  the  time 
to  procure  further  evidence  should  be  extended,,  and  stating  the  earliest 
day  at  which  he  expects  to  be  able  to  obtain  such  evidence.  If  a  pro- 
bable defense  appears  from  his  answer,  and  the  application  for  further 
time  is  reasonable,  an  order  will  be  made  granting  it. 

Both  parties  should  have  their  affidavits,  &c,  legibly  written  upon 
foolscap  paper,  if  practicable,  and  upon  the  same  sheet  or  continuous 
sheets,  written  on  both  sides,  and  fastened  together  in  the  manner  of 
legal  pleadings,  and  not  upon  separate  scraps  of  paper.  They  should 
be  endorsed  with  a  title,  indicating  the  nature  of  the  application,  and  the 
district,  town  and  county  where  the  matter  arose,  together  with  the 
post-office  address  of  the  person  transmitting  them.  Though  these  may 
appear  trifling  minutia3,  the  neglect  of  them  produces  great  embarrass- 
ment and  delay  in  a  public  office  which  is  burdened  with  a  very  exten- 
sive correspondence. 

[Code/1  15 


114  POWERS  AND  DUTIES 

No.  9.  The  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  shall  be 
charged  with  providing  the  means  of  education  for  all  the  Indian 
children  in  the  state.  He  shall  cause  to  be  ascertained  the 
condition  of  the  various  bands  in  the  state,  in  respect  to 
education ;  he  shall  establish  schools  in  such  places  and 
of  such  character  and  description  as  he  shall  deem  necessary  ; 
lie  shall  employ  superintendents  for  such  schools,  and  shall, 
with  the  concurrence  of  the  comptroller  and  secretary  of 
state,  cause  to  be  erected,  where  necessary,  convenient  build- 
ings for  their  accommodation.     (Sec.  1,  chap.  71  of  1856.) 

No.  10.  In  the  discharge  of  the  duties  imposed  by  this  act, 
the  said  superintendent  shall  endeavor  to  secure  the  coopera- 
tion of  all  the  several  bands  of  Indians,  and  for  this  purpose 
shall  visit,  by  himself  or  his  authorized  agent,  all  the  reserva- 
tions where  they  reside,  lay  the  matter  before  them  in  public 
assembly,  inviting  them  to  assist  either  by  appropriating  their 
public  moneys  to  this  object  or  by  setting  apart  lands  and 
erecting  suitable  buildings,  or  by  furnishing  labor  or  materials 
for  such  buildings,  or  in  any  other  way  which  he  or  they  may 
suggest  as  most  effectual  for  the  promotion  of  this  object. 
(Sec.  2,  chap.  71  of  1856.) 

No.  11.  In  any  contract  which  may  be  entered  into  with 
the  said  Indians,  for  the  use  or  occupancy  of  any  land  for 
school  grounds,  sites  or  buildings,  care  shall  be  taken  to  pro- 
tect the  title  of  the  Indians  to  their  lands,  and  to  reserve  to 
the  state  the  right  to  remove  or  otherwise  dispose  of  all  im- 
provements made  at  the  expense  of  the  state.  ( Sec.  3,  chap. 
71  o/1856.) 

No.  12.  The  Indian  children  in  the  state,  between  the  ages 
of  four  and  twenty-one  years,  shall  be  entitled  to  draw  public 
money  the  same  as  white  children.  The  superintendent  shall 
cause  an  annual  enumeration  of  said  Indian  children  to  be 
made,  and  shall  see  that  the  public  money  to  which  they  are 
ratably  entitled  is  devoted  exclusively  to  their  education. 
(Sec.  4,  chap.  71  of  1856.) 

No.  13.  To  carry  into  effect  the  provisions  of  this  act,  the 
sum  of  five  thousand  dollars  is  hereby  appropriated  out  of 
the  surplus  income  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund,  to  bo 
paid  by  the  treasurer,  on  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller. 


OF  STATE  SUPERINTENDENT.  115 

from  time  to  time,  to  the  order  of  the  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction.  (Sec.  5,  chap.  71  of 1856.) 

No.  14.  The  superintendent  shall  take  and  file  in  his  office 
vouchers  and  receipts  for  all  the  expenditures  made  under 
this  act,  subject  to  the  inspection  of  the  joint  committee  to 
examine  the  accounts  of  the  auditor  and  treasurer,  and  shall 
annually  report  to  the  legislature  all  his  doings  by  virtue  of 
the  authority  vested  in  him ;  and  for  this  purpose  said  super- 
intendent may  require  full  and  detailed  reports,  in  such  form 
as  he  may  prescribe,  from  those  having  the  immediate  super- 
vision of  any  Indian  schools  in  this  state.  ( §  6,  chap.  71  (flS56. ) 

No.  15.  The  institution  for  the  deaf  and  dumb  in  the  city 
of  New- York,  and  every  other  similar  institution  incorporated 
or  to  be  incorporated  in  this  state,  shall  be  subject  to  the 
visitation  of  the  Superintendent  of  [  Public  Instruction  ].  (  Rev. 
Stat.,  sec.  1,  tit.  3,  chap.  15,  part  1st.  The  words  "  public  instruc- 
tion'''' substituted  for  "  common  schools"  in  conformity  to  No.  1  of 
this  compilation. ) 

No.  16.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  superintendent,  as  such 
visitor : 

1.  To  inquire  from  time  to  time  into  the  expenditures  of 
each  institution  and  the  systems  of  instruction  pursued  therein 
respectively ; 

2.  To  visit  and  inspect  the  schools  belonging  thereto,  and 
the  lodgings  and  accommodations  of  the  pupils  ; 

3.  To  ascertain,  by  a  comparison  with  other  similar  institu- 
tions, whether  any  improvements  in  instruction  and  discipline 
can  be  made ;  and  for  that  purpose  to  appoint  from  time  to 
time  suitable  persons  to  visit  the  schools ; 

4.  To  suggest  to  the  directors  of  such  institution  and  to  the 
legislature  such  improvements  as  he  shall  judge  expedient ; 

5.  To  make  an  annual  report  to  the  legislature  on  all  the 
matters  before  enumerated,  and  particularly  as  to  the  condi- 
tion of  the  schools,  the  improvement  of  the  pupils  and  their 
treatment  in  respect  to  board  and  lodging.  (Rev.  Stat.,  sec.  2, 
tit.  3,  chap.  ]  5,  part  1st. ) 

No.  17.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  overseers  of  the  poor  in 
each  town  to  furnish  the  Superintendent  of  [Public  Instruc- 
tion] with  a  list  of  the  deaf  and  dumb  persons  in  their 
respective  towns,  so  far  as  they  can  ascertain  them,  with  such 


116  POWERS  AND  DUTIES 

particulars  in  relation  to  the  condition  of  eacli  as  shall  be 
prescribed  by  the  said  superintendent.  (Sec.  1,  chaj).  223  of 
3832  The  words  " public  instruction''''  substituted  for  "common 
schools,^  in  covformitrj  to  No.  1  of  this  compilation.) 

No.  18.  From  the  list  thus  obtained,  the  superintendent 
may  select  as  state  pupils  such  as  are  properly  embraced 
within  the  provisions  of  the  existing  laws,  and  make  such 
regulations  and  give  such  directions  to  parents  and  guardians, 
in  relation  to  the  admission  of  pupils  at  stated  periods,  as  will 
remove  the  inconvenience  of  having  pupils  of  the  same  class 
entering  the  school  at  different  periods.  (Sec.  2,  chap.  223 
of  1832. ) 

No.  19.  Every  indigent  deaf  and  dumb  person,  resident  of 
this  state,  between  twelve  and  twenty-five  years  of  age, 
whose  parent  or  parents,  or,  if  an  orphan,  whose  nearest  friend 
shall  have  been  resident  in  this  state  for  three  years,  and  who 
may  make  application  for  that  purpose,  shall,  until  provision 
be  made  by  law  for  his  or  her  instruction  in  some  other  insti- 
tution or  school,  be  received  into  the  New-York  institution 
for  the  instruction  of  the  deaf  and  dumb,  provided  his  or  her 
application  for  the  purpose  be  first  approved  of  by  the  Super- 
intendent of  Public  Instruction.  (Sec.  1,  chap.  272  o/"1854.) 

Prior  to  the  passage  of  this  act  the  number  of  state  pupils  had  been 
limited,  and  they  were  apportioned  equally  among  the  old  senate 
districts,  as  established  under  the  constitution  of  1822.  This  restriction 
is  now  abrogated ;  but  it  is  still  necessary  that  the  indigence  of  the 
applicant  be  established  by  the  certificate  of  the  overseers  of  the  poor 
of  the  town  wherein  such  deaf  and  dumb  person  shall  reside,  "  to  the 
inability  of  the  parent,  parents  or  guardian  to  pay  for  his  or  her  board 
and  tuition."  In  case  the  applicant  is  over  twenty-one  years  of  age,  the 
overseers  should  certify  to  the  inability  of  the  candidate  himself;  and  in 
case  the  parent,  parents  or  guardian  (or  the  applicant  himself,  if  of  full 
age)  have  the  ability  to  pay  any  portion  of  the  board  and  tuition,  or 
for  the  clothing  of  a  deaf  and  dumb  person,  the  overseers  of  the  poor  are 
required  to  certify  and  state  the  amount.  They  are  also  required  to  state 
in  their  certificate  that  the  parent  or  parents,  or,  if  an  orphan,  the  nearest 
friend  of  the  deaf  mute,  have  been  resident  in  this  state  for  three  years. 
It  is  provided  by  sec.  3,  chap.  244  of  Laws  of  1838,  that  "  the  supervisors 
of  any  county  in  this  state,  from  which  state  pupils  may  be  selected, 


OF  STATE  SUPERINTENDENT.  117 

whose  parents  or  guardians  are  unable  to  furnish  them  with  suitable 
clothing,  are  hereby  authorized  and  required,  while  such  pupils  are 
under  instruction,  to  raise  a  sum  of  money  for  this  purpose,  not  exceed- 
ing twenty  dollars  in  any  one  year  for  each  pupil,  from  said  county." 

No.  20.  Each  indigent  pupil,  so  received  into  the  institu- 
tion aforesaid,  shall  be  provided  with  board,  lodging  and 
tuition ;  and  the  directors  of  the  institution  shall  receive  for 
each  pupil  so  provided  for  the  sum  of  one  hundred  and  fifty 
dollars  per  annum,  in  quarterly  payments,  to  be  paid  by  the 
treasurer  of  the  state,  on  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller,  to 
the  treasurer  of  the  said  institution  on  his  presenting  a  bill  of 
the  actual  time  and  number  of  pupils  attending  the  institu- 
tion, and  which  bill  shall  be  signed  and  verified  by  the  oath 
of  president  and  secretary  of  the  institution.  The  regular 
term  of  instruction  for  such  pupils  shall  be  five  years.  The 
indigent  pupils  prdvided  for  in  this  act  shall  be  designated 
state  pupils,  and  all  the  existing  provisions  of  law  applicable 
to  state  pupils  now  in  said  institution  shall  apply  to  pupils 
herein  provided  for.  (Sec.  2,  chap.  272  of  18-54. ) 

No.  21.  It  shall  be  lawful  for  the  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction  to  continue  at  the  said  institution  for  a  period  not 
exceeding  three  years,  for  the  purpose  of  pursuing  a  course 
of  studies  in  the  higher  branches  of  learning,  such  pupils,  not 
exceeding  twelve  in  number,  as  may  have  completed  their  full 
term  of  instruction,  and  who  may  be  recommended  by  the 
directors  of  said  institution.  (  Sec.  3,  chap.  272  of  1854.) 

No.  22.  The  Superintendent  of  [Public  Instruction]  is  here- 
by authorized  to  visit  and  inspect  the  New-York  institution 
for  the  blind,  in  all  its  departments,  and  to  report  to  the 
legislature  on  such  matters  and  things  relating  to  the  interests 
of  said  institution  as  he  may  deem  necessary.  ( Sec.  6,  chap. 
200  of '1839.  The  words  "public  instruction  "  substituted  for  "  com- 
mon schools,"  in  accordance  with  No.  1  of  this  compilation.) 

No.  23.  *  *  *  *  *  And  it  is  hereby  declared  that  every 
indigent  blind  person,  resident  of  this  state,  between  twelve 
and  twenty-five  years  of  age,  whose  parent  or  parents,  or,  if 
an  orphan,  whose  nearest  friend  shall  have  been  a  resident  in 
this  state,  and  who  may  make  application  for  that  purpose, 
shall,  until  provision  be  made  by  law  for  his  or  her  instruction 


118  POWERS  AND  DUTIES 

in  some  other  institution  or  school,  be  received  into  said  insti- 
tution for  the  blind  and  be  instructed  in  literary  or  school 
education,  and  in  some  trade  or  employment  now  or  hereafter 
to  be  taught  and  carried  on  in  said  institution,  provided  his. 
or  her  application  be  first  approved  of  by  the  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction.  (Part  of  sec.  1,  chap.  539  [Supply  BUI], 
of  1855,  Session  Laws,  p.  1018,) 

Chap.  200  of  1839,  authorized  the  managers  of  the  New- York  insti 
tution  for  the  blind,  to  receive  from  each  of  the  old  senate  districts,  as 
established  under  the  constitution  of  1822.  eight  indigent  blind  persons 
in  addition  to  those  theretofore  provided  for  by  the  state,  viz.,  four  from 
each  senate  district,  under  chap.  316  of  1834,  and  four,  in  addition  from 
each  district,  under  chap.  293  of  1836.  The  number  was  thus  raised 
to  sixteen  from  each  of  the  eight  former  senate  districts,  or  one  hundred 
and  twenty-eight  in  all.  They  were,  in  virtue  of  those  acts,  to  be 
received  "  between  eight  and  twenty-five  years  of  age,"  "  in  like  manner 
and  at  the  like  expense  to  the  state  as  is  provided  by  law  for  the  indi- 
gent deaf  and  dumb."  The  act  of  1839  provides  that  "  all  of  said  pupils 
shall  be  instructed  for  a  period  not  exceeding  five  years  in  such  studies 
or  employments  as  now  are  or  may  hereafter  be  taught  or  carried  on  in 
said  institution  ;  but  when  it  may  be  advantageous  to  prolong  the  time 
of  instruction  of  any  one  or  more  of  the  pupils  now  in  said  institution, 
or  of  those  which  may  hereafter  be  received  therein,  the  managers  may, 
in  their  discretion,  retain  them  for  a  term  not  exceeding  two  years 
beyond  that  now  provided  for  by  law  ;  first  obtaining  for  that  purpose 
the  approbation  of  the  Superintendent"  of  [Public  Instruction]. 

The  supervisors  of  any  county  in  the  state  from  which  state  pupils 
may  be  sent,  whose  parents  or  guardians  are  unable  to  furnish  them 
with  suitable  clothing,  are  required  by  sec.  5,  chap.  200  of  1839,  while 
such  pupils  are  under  instruction,  to  raise  a  sum  of  money  for  this  pur- 
pose, not  exceeding  $20  in  any  one  year  for  each  pupil  from  said 
county. 

These  provisions  have  not  been  expressly  repealed,  and  it  may  be  a 
question  how  far  the  act  of  1855  is  to  be  regarded  as  modifying  them. 
May  not  indigent  blind  children,  to  the  number  of  sixteen  from  each  of 
the  former  senate  districts,  still  be  admitted  as  state  pupils,  although 
between  the  ages  of  eight  and  twelve  years  ?  It  will  be  observed  that 
the  act  of  1855  does  not  limit  the  term  of  instruction,  and  does  not 
pledge    the   state   to    any   particular   rate    of    compensation    fo*  the 


OF  STATE  SUPERINTENDENT.  119 

board  and  instruction  of  the  pupils.  Up  to  the  number  of  one  hundred 
and  twenty-eight,  the  term  of  instruction  and  the  allowance  to  the  insti- 
tution, are  fixed  by  previous  laws. 

No.  24.  The  superintendent  shall  prepare  suitable  forms  and 
regulations  for  making  all  reports,  and  conducting  all  neces- 
sary proceedings  under  this  title,  and  shall  cause  the  same, 
with  such  instructions  as  he  shall  deem  necessary  and  proper 
for  the  better  organization  and  government  of  common  schools, 
to  be  transmitted  to  the  officers  required  to  execute  the  pro- 
visions of  this  title  throughout  the  state.  (Sec.  9,  title  2,  chap. 
15,  part  1  of  the  Revised  Statutes.) 

The  title  of  the  Revised  Statutes  above  referred  to,  is  that  "  of  com- 
mon schools"  embodying  all  the  provisions  in  respect  to  their  organiza- 
tion and  management,  and  which,  as  modified  by  subsequent  legislation, 
are  collated  in  this  volume.  The  succeeding  section  directed  the 
superintendent  to  "  cause  so  many  copies  of  the  first  six  articles  of  this 
title,  with  the  forms,  regulations  and  instructions  prepared  by  him 
thereto  annexed,  to  be  from  time  to  time  printed  and  distributed  among 
the  several  school  districts  of  the  state,  as  he  shall  deem  the  public  good 
to  require  ;"  and  sec.  1 1  provided  that  "  all  moneys  reasonably  expended 
by  him  in  the  execution  of  his  duties,  shall,  upon  due  proof,  be  allowed 
to  him  by  the  comptroller,  and  be  paid  out  of  the  treasury."  These 
provisions,  however,  are  rendered  substantially  nugatory  by  sec.  8,  art.  7, 
of  the  constitution  of  1846. 

"  No  moneys  shall  ever  be  paid  out  of  the  treasury  of  this  state  or 
any  of  its  funds,  or  any  of  the  funds  under  its  management,  except  in 
pursuance  of  an  appropriation  by  law,  nor  unless  such  payment  be  made 
within  two  years  next  after  the  passage  of  such  an  appropriation  act ; 
and  every  such  law  making  a  new  appropriation,  or  continuing  or 
reviving  an  appropriation,  shall  distinctly  specify  the  sum  appropriated 
and  the  object  to  which  it  is  to  be  applied  ;  and  it  shall  not  be  sufficient 
for  such  law  to  refer  to  any  other  law  to  fix  such  sum." 


120  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

OF  THE  APPORTIONMENT  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS. 

No.  25.  There  shall  hereafter  be  raised  by  tax,  in  the  pre- 
sent and  each  succeeding  year,  upon  the  real  and  personal 
estate  of  each  county  within  the  state,  three-fourths  of  a  mill 
upon  each  and  every  dollar  of  the  valuation  of  such  estate, 
for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  this  state,  to  be  appor- 
tioned and  distributed  by  the  Superintendent  of  Public  In- 
struction, in  the  same  manner  as  the  proceeds  of  the  state  tax 
of  eight  hundred  thousand  dollars,  in  lieu  of  which  this  tax 
is  substituted,  and  now  required  to  be  apportioned  and  dis- 
tributed except  as  hereinafter  provided.  The  board  of 
supervisors  of  each  county  shall  assess  such  amount  upon 
the  real  and  personal  estate  of  such  county,  in  the  manner 
provided  by  law  for  the  assessment  and  collection  of 
taxes ;  and  shall  annually,  as  soon  as  the  aggregate  valua- 
tion of  the  real  and  personal  estate  of  their  county  shall 
be  ascertained,  give  immediate  notice  thereof  to  the  Super- 
intendent of  Public  Instruction.  No  clerk  of  any  board 
of  supervisors,  or  other  person  who  may  make  out  the  tax 
list  or  assessment  rolls  of  any  town,  shall  omit  to  include  and 
apportion  among  the  moneys  to  be  raised  thereby,  the  amount 
hereby  required  to  be  raised  for  the  support  of  schools,  by 
reason  of  the  omission  of  the  board  of  supervisors  to  pass  a 
resolution  for  that  purpose.     (Sec.  1,  chap.  180  of  1856.) 

In  addition  to  the  proceeds  of  the  state  tax,  there  are  annually 
apportioned  and  distributed  for  the  support  of  common  schools :  1st. 
The  revenue  of  the  common  school  fund,  in  accordance  with  sec.  2,  title 
4,  chap.  9,  part  1  of  the  Revised  Statutes. 

"There  shall  be  annually  distributed,  as  the  revenue  of  the  common 
school  fund,  and  according  to  the  apportionment  of  the  superintendent 
of  common  schools  then  in  force,  the  sum  of  one  hundred  thousand 
dollars  for  the  support  and  encouragement  of  common  schools,  to  be 
denominated  '  school  moneys ;'  and  as  often  as  such  revenue  shall  be 
increased  by  the  sum  of  ten  thousand  dollars,  such  increase  shall  be 
added  to  the  sum  to  be  distributed." 

Under  this  provision,  $145,000  of  the  revenue  is  annually  apportioned. 
The  revenue  for  the  fiscal  year  ending  September  30,  1855,  was 
$143,127.73,  and  the  capital  at  that  date  $2,457,520.86.  The  consti- 
tution provides  that  "  the  sum  of  twenty-five  thousand  dollars  of  the 
revenues  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund  shall  each  year  be  appro 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  121 

priated  to  and  made  part  of  the  capital  of  the  said  common  school  fund." 
The  principal  increase  of  the  fund  is  derived  from  this  source,  nearly  all 
the  lands  belonging  to  it  having  been  sold. 

2.  One  hundred  and  ten  thousand  dollars  for  teachers'  wages,  and 
$55,000  for  district  libraries,  are  also  annually  distributed  from  the 
income  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund.  The  appropriation  of  these 
sums  was  originally  made  by  chap.  237  of  1838.  That  act,  after  making 
sundry  appropriations  of  the  income  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund 
for  literary  purposes,  provided  as  follows  : 

"  §  10.  The  residue  of  the  income  aforesaid,  not  otherwise  appropriated, 
shall  be  annually  added  to  the  capital  of  the  common  school  fund;  and 
the  comptroller  is  hereby  authorized  and  required  to  invest  such  surplus 
moneys  in  like  manner  as  he  is  now  authorized  to  invest  the  moneys  of 
the  common  school  fund." 

In  1847,  when  the  new  constitution  took  effect,  and  also  in  1849, 
the  legislature  in  the  acts  appropriating  the  revenues  of  the  literature 
and  United  States  deposit  funds,  reenacted  the  provision  assigning  the 
unappropriated  residue  of  the  latter  fund  to  the  common  school  fund. 
This  was  apparently  done  to  comply  with  the  provision  of  the  constitu- 
tion, limiting  the  operation  of  a  law  appropriating  money  to  two  years 
from  the  date  of  its  passage.  It  is  believed,  however,  that  a  law  merely 
designating  the  fund  to  which  money  is  to  be  credited,  when  it  reaches 
the  treasury,  does  not  come  within  that  clause  of  the  constitution,  and 
that  the  above  cited  provision  of  the  act  of  1838  is  still  in  force,  although 
it  has  not  been  reenacted  since  1849. 

Chap.  382  of  1849,  contains  the  following  provision  applicable  to  the 
surplus  income  of  the  deposit  fund  as  to  all  other  moneys  received  on 
account  of  the  school  fund. 

"§  13.  Whenever  any  money  is  paid  into  the  treasury  of  the  state 
for  or  on  account  of  the  common  school  fund,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of 
the  comptroller  to  credit  the  common  school  fund  with  interest  on  the 
sum  so  paid  in,  at  the  rate  of  six  per  cent  per  annum,  for  the  time  the 
same  shall  remain  in  the  treasury." 

No.  26.  All  the  moneys  received  or  appropriated  by  the 
provisions  of  this  act  shall  be  applied  to  the  payment  of 
teachers'  wages  exclusively.     (Sec.  11,  chajt.  151  of  1851.) 

This  provision,  it  is  declared  by  sec.  1,  chap.  425  of  1851,  "shall  not 
be  so  construed  as  to  prevent  or  prohibit  the  distribution  and  application 
of  library  money  in  the  manner  heretofore  prescribed  by  law." 

ICODE.1  16 


122  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

No.  27.  Every  commissioner  chosen  or  elected  in  pursu- 
ance of  this  act,  shall  receive  an  annual  salary  of  at  least  five 
hundred  dollars,  to  be  paid  out  of  the  income  of  the  United 
States  deposit  fund,  appropriated  to  this  purpose  or  to  the 
support  of  common  schools,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  to  apportion  to  each 
county,  in  his  annual  apportionment  of  the  income  of  said 
fund  thus  appropriated,  five  hundred  dollars  for  the  salary  of 
each  commissioner  of  common  schools  in  said  county,  created 
under  authority  of  this  act.  (Sec.  12,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

The  commissioners  referred  to  in  the  preceding  section  are  the  school 
commissioners  appointed  for  each  assembly  district,  or  in  certain 
counties  for  a  section  of  an  assembly  district,  under  the  act  t«  provide 
for  a  more  thorough  supervision  and  inspection  of  common  schools, 
passed  April  12,  1856. 

No.  28.  The  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  shall 
also  apportion  to  each  of  the  cities  in  this  state,  having,  under 
special  acts,  a  superintendent  of  common  schools,  or  whose 
boards  of  education  choose  a  clerk  doing  the  duty  of  super- 
vision under  their  direction,  out  of  the  income  of  the  United 
States  deposit  fund  appropriated  for  this  purpose,  or  for  the 
support  of  common  schools,  the  sum  of  five  hundred  dollars 
for  each  member  of  assembly  to  which  such  city  shall  be 
entitled  according  to  the  unit  of  representation  adopted  by 
the  legislature,  to  be  paid  into  the  city  treasury,  and  expended 
as  required  by  law  for  the  support  of  schools.  ( Sec.  15,  chap. 
179  o/1856.) 

No.  29.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  State  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  January  of 
each  and  every  year,  after  deducting  any  portion  hereinbefore 
required  to  be  apportioned  for  and  on  account  of  supervision, 
to  apportion  and  divide  one-third  of  the  remainder  of  the 
income  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund  appropriated  by  law 
for  the  support  of  schools,  and  one-third  of  all  other  moneys 
thus  appropriated,  among  the  several  school  districts  and 
separate  neighborhoods  in  this  state,  from  which  reports  shall 
have  been  received,  in  accordance  with  law,  in  the  following 
manner,  viz :  to  each  separate  neighborhood  belonging  to  a 
school  district  in  some  adjoining  state,  there  shall  be  appor- 
tioned and  paid  a  sum  of  money  equal  to  thirty-three  cents 
for  each  child  in  such  neighborhood  (between  the  ages  of 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  123 

four  and  twenty-one);  but  the  sum  so  to  be  apportioned  and 
paid  to  any  such  neighborhood,  shall  in  no  case  exceed  the 
sum  of  twenty-four  dollars  ;  and  the  residue  of  such  one-third 
shall  be  apportioned  and  divided  equally  among  the  school 
districts ;  and  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction 
shall,  by  proper  regulations  and  instructions  to  be  prescribed 
by  him,  provide  for  the  payment  of  such  moneys  to  the  trus- 
tees of  such  separate  neighborhoods  and  school  districts. 
(Sec.  30,  chap.  179  o/1856.) 

Under  the  former  system,  the  number  of  children  in  separate  neigh- 
borhoods, and  the  number  of  school  districts  in  the  state  to  'which  an 
apportionment  is  to  be  made  by  the  State  Superintendent  on  the  first 
day  of  January,  1857,  would  have  to  be  ascertained  from  abstracts  made 
by  the  school  commissioners  of  the  reports  of  trustees  of  school  districts 
rendered  between  the  1st  and  15th  day  of  January,  1856,  and  contain- 
ing the  statistics  of  schools  and  teachers  during  the  year  1855.  Such  a 
report  must  have  been  made  and  transmitted  to  the  late  town  superin- 
tendent, in  order  to  fulfill  the  condition  that  the  district  be  one  of  those 
"  from  which  reports  shall  have  been  received  in  accordance  with  law." 
It  is  to  be  observed  that  no  discretion  is  vested  in  the  State  Superin- 
tendent to  admit  a  district  to  a  share  in  the  equal  apportionment  of 
one-third  of  the  public  moneys,  in  case  of  a  failure  to  make  the  legal 
report,  whatever  mitigating  circumstances  may  exist  to  excuse  the 
delinquency.  The  statute  requires  that  the  whole  of  the  sum  equally 
apportioned  be  divided  among  the  districts  from  which  reports  have 
been  received.  This  being  done,  the  money  is  exhausted,  and  the  quota 
of  a  non-reporting  district  cannot  be  obtained  without  a  contribution 
from  every  other  district  in  the  state  ;  which,  even  if  it  were  practically 
feasible  to  collect,  the  superintendent  has  no  authority  to  demand. 
This  consideration  enforces  upon  the  trustees  of  districts  the  duty 
of  making  their  annual  report  in  all  cases,  notwithstanding  they  may  be 
obliged  to  admit  in  their  report  that  they  have  maintained  school  for  a 
less  period  than  six  months,  that  they  have  employed  unqualified 
teachers,  or  have  in  other  respects  failed  to  comply  with  the  requisitions 
of  law. 

The  very  prevalent  error  which  leads  to  numerous  fruitless  applica- 
tions to  the  department  for  the  restoration  of  a  forfeited  "  district  quota" 
(as,  for  the  sake  of  brevity,  the  share  of  a  district  in  the  one-third  of  the 
public  moneys  equally  distributed,  will  be  denominated),  arises  from 


124  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

overlooking  the  fact  that  the  permission  which  the  State  Superintendent 
is  authorized,  by  a  subsequent  section,  to  grant,  is  a  permission  to  be 
included  in  the  apportionment  made  by  the  school  commissioners  of  the 
remaining  two-thirds  of  the  school  moneys  which  are  distributed  to  the 
counties  and  cities  in  proportion  to  their  population.  Such  permission 
relates  exclusively  to  what  may,  for  the  sake  of  convenient  brevity,  be 
denominated  the  "pupil  quota" — the  portion  of  the  public  money 
distributed  to  the  county  on  the  basis  of  its  entire  population,  which  a 
district  is  entitled  to  receive  on  its  reapportionment  by  the  school  com- 
missioners in  proportion  to  the  number  of  residents  between  the  ages  of 
four  and  twenty-one  years. 

It  having  been  determined  whether  the  district  is  or  is  not  entitled 
to  a  "district  quota,"  by  seeing  whether  a  report  has  been  received 
therefrom  in  accordance  with  law  and  whether  it  has  complied  with  the 
requisition  of  the  next  succeeding  section,  the  amount  of  such  quota  is 
to  be  determined  according  to  No.  31,  to  the  remarks  under  which  tho 
reader  is  referred. 

No.  30.  Every  district  in  this  state  in  which  a  school  shall 
have  been  taught  by  a  qualified  teacher  for  the  time  of  six 
months,  or  by  successive  teachers,  whose  periods  of  actual 
instruction  amount  in  the  aggregate  to  six  months,  and  no 
other,  shall  be  enumerated  for  the  purpose  of  the  distribution 
of  so  much  of  the  school  money  as  shall  be  divided  equally 
among  the  districts.     (Sec.  2,  chap.  180  of  1856.) 

The  statute  is  here  imperative  that  no  other  district  shall  be  enume- 
rated, among  those  to  which  a  "  district  quota"  is  apportioned,  than 
those  in  which  a  school  shall  have  been  taught  by  a  qualified  teacher  or 
teachers  for  the  period  of  six  months.  The  State  Superintendent  has 
no  authority  to  overlook  or  excuse  a  delinquency  in  this  particular,  no 
matter  what  extenuating  circumstances  may  be  shown  in  palliation.  It 
is  essential  that  the  teacher  should  possess  a  proper  certificate  of  quali- 
fication during  the  whole  period  of  his  instruction,  and  it  is  therefore 
incumbent  upon  the  trustees  to  require  an  actual  production  of  the  cer- 
tificate, before  entering  into  any  contract  with  a  candidate  for  the  post 
of  teacher  in  their  school,  that  they  may  ascertain  by  its  examination 
whether  it  is  granted  by  the  proper  officer,  is  in  due  form,  and  has  not 
expired  by  lapse  of  time. 

The  Revised  Statutes,  sec.  4,  title  1,  chap.  19,  part  1,  provide  that 
"  Whenever  the  term  month  is  or  shall  be  used  in  any  statute,  act,  deed, 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  125 

verbal  or  written  contract,  or  any  public  or  private  instrument  whatever, 
it  shall  be  construed  to  mean  a  calendar  and  not  a  lunar  month,  unless 
otherwise  expressed." 

In  accordance  with  this  rule  it  is  conceived  that  the  period  between 
the  beginning  and  the  ending  of  the  term  of  instruction  must  actually 
include  the  full  period  of  six  calendar  months,  or,  if  there  has  been  an 
intermediate  vacation,  that  the  two  periods  shall  in  the  aggregate  amount 
to  six  calendar  months.  This  does  not  imply,  however,  that  the  teacher 
should  actually  devote  one  hundred  and  eighty-two  days  to  instruction. 
The  month  of  February,  for  example,  may  begin  and  terminate  on  Sun- 
day, leaving  but  twenty-five  secular  days ;  one  of  these,  the  22d,  the 
birthday  of  Washington,  is  very  generally  observed  as  a  public  holiday ; 
and,  when  so  observed,  a  teacher  is  discharged  from  any  obligation  to 
teach  school.  There  are  also  four  Saturdays,  on  each  of  which  he  is 
entitled  to  a  half  holiday,  or  to  the  whole  of  the  alternate  ones,  accord- 
ing to  the  custom  of  the  district.  The  actual  month's  work  would,  in 
this  case,  be  reduced  to  twenty-three  days.  The  month  of  July,  of 
thirty-one  days,  may  include  five  Sundays  and  five  Saturdays,  besides 
the  national  holiday,  the  4th.  In  this  case  the  actual  period  of  instruc- 
tion would  be  but  twenty-two  days  and  a  half.  In  both  cases,  however, 
the  teacher  would,  unless  a  special  contract  to  the  contrary  was  made, 
be  entitled  to  a  full  month's  wages.  The  ordinary  month's  work  for  a 
teacher,  in  the  absence  of  any  special  agreement  to  the  contrary,  is 
tAventy-four  days ;  but  to  comply  with  the  above  provision,  in  respect  to 
the  allowance  of  a  "  district  quota,"  it  is  believed  that  the  six  months' 
work  must  extend  through  six  calendar  months. 

No.  31.  Every  district  school  in  which  two  or  more  quali- 
fied teachers  are  actually  employed  at  the  same  time,  for  the 
period  of  six  months  or  over,  shall  be  enumerated  as  so  many 
districts  as  there  have  been  teachers  thus  employed  during  the 
year,  whether  any  one  or  more  of  them  had  been  continuously 
employed  for  the  whole  period  of  six  months  or  not,  providing 
the  number  of  teachers  actually  employed  shall  have  been  at 
no  time  less  than  the  number  at  which  the  district  is  enume- 
rated. Pupils  employed  as  monitors,  or  otherwise,  shall  not 
be  deemed  teachers  for  the  purpose  of  such  enumeration. 
(Sec.  3,  chap.  180  of  1856.) 

In  order  to  entitle  a  district  to  the  benefit  of  this  provision,  it  will  be 
necessary  to  show  a  strict  compliance  with  the  prescribed  conditions. 


126  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

Whether  any  further  evidence  than  the  annual  report  of  the  trustees 
will  be  required,  it  is  now  premature  to  determine.  The  statement  of 
the  report  must  be  based  upon  these  facts,  or  they  must  be  made  to 
appear  by  an  affidavit  of  the  trustees,  transmitted  to  the  department 
before  the  time  of  making  the  apportionment,  viz : 

1.  That  two  or  more  teachers,  each  of  whom  possessed  a  legal  certi- 
ficate of  qualification  during  the  whole  period  which  the  trustees  esti- 
mate as  a  part  of  the  six  months,  have  been  actually  employed  in 
instructing  the  district  school,  at  the  same  time,  for  the  period  of  six 
months  or  over. 

The  instruction  may  be  given  in  different  rooms  or  in  different  build- 
ings ;  for  all  the  pupils  within  the  district,  under  the  tuition  of  teachers 
employed  by  the  trustees  in  their  official  capacity,  however  dispersed, 
constitute  but  one  school.  This  principle  was  settled,  in  respect  to  the 
mode  of  compensating  teachers  and  the  equality  of  rate  bills,  as  long 
ago  as  1826.  (See  decision  of  Supt.  Flagg,p.  4,  Common  Schoool  Deci- 
sion ;  do.,  p.  56.) 

It  is  not  necessary  that  all  or  either  of  the  teachers  should  have  been 
continuously  employed  for  the  whole  period  of  six  months.  Thus,  two 
qualified  teachers  may  be  employed  at  the  same  time  during  three 
months  in  the  spring ;  a  vacation  may  intervene,  and  two  other  qualified 
teachers  may  be  employed  for  three  months  in  the  summer  or  autumn. 
The  provision,  that  "  the  number  of  teachers  actually  employed  shall 
have  been  at  no  time  less  than  the  number  at  which  the  district  is 
enumerated,"  must  be  construed  as  meaning  at  no  time  during  the  six 
months  in  which  the  stated  number  of  teachers  is  alleged  to  have  beeu 
employed.  A  construction  which  would  apply  the  words  no  time  to 
the  whole  year,  would  debar  a  district  from  a  double  quota,  which, 
having  employed  but  one  teacher  in  the  first  four  months  of  1856,  should 
have  engaged  two  immediately  after  the  passage  of  the  act,  and  kept 
them  continuously  employed  for  the  remaining  eight  months  of  the 
year.  It  was  undoubtedly  the  intention  of  the  legislature  that  no 
teacher  should  be  counted  twice,  because  he  may  have  been  employed 
twelve  months,  and  that  no  device  of  average  or  of  equivalents  should 
be  resorted  to  for  the  purpose  of  computing  the  number  of  teachers  ;  for 
example,  that  three  months'  instruction  by  two  teachers,  and  six  months' 
additional  instruction  by  one  of  them,  should  not  be  deemed  as  amount- 
ing to  six  months'  employment  of  two  teachers.  Any  interpretation 
which  would  give  room  for  such  modes  of  enumeration  would  afford  an 
unjust  advantage  to  the  schools  of  the  larger  cities,  in  which  numerous 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  12 1 

teachers  are  employed,  and  which  are  kept  open  during  the  whole  year, 
with  brief  intervals  of  vacation. 

2.  It  must  affirmatively  appear  that  no  one  of  the  teachers  referred  to 
in  the  statement  was  a  pupil,  employed  as  a  monitor  or  otherwise, 
during  any  portion  of  the  period  in  which  he  is  enumerated  as  a 
teacher. 

The  policy  of  the  legislature,  in  the  enactment  of  this  section,  was 
unquestionably  to  encourage  the  formation  of  large  schools,  classi- 
fied in  different  departments,  or  separated  where  necessary  in  different 
buildings,  in  preference  to  the  division  of  districts  and  the  multiplication 
of  feeble  schools. 

No.  32.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  State  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  January 
of  each  and  every  year,  to  apportion  and  divide  the  remaining 
two-thirds  of  the  remainder  specified  in  the  preceding  sec- 
tion (No.  27)  among  the  several  counties,  according  to  popu- 
lation, as  the  same  shall  appear  from  the  last  preceding  state 
or  United  States  census  ;  but  in  counties  in  which  are  situated 
cities  having  a  special  school  act,  he  shall  apportion  to  each 
city  the  part  to  which  it  shall  be  entitled,  and  to  the  remain- 
der of  the  county  the  part  to  which  it  shall  be  entitled  ;  and 
he  shall  certify  such  apportionment,  and  every  other  appor- 
tionment, to  the  county  clerk  of  the  county  to  which  they 
shall  be  made,  and  to  the  school  commissioner  or  school  com- 
missioners of  such  county  : 

(1.)  And  the  school  commissioner,  or  school  commissioners 
jointly  in  counties  having  more  than  one  commissioner,  shall 
forthwith  proceed  to  set  apart,  to  each  separate  neighborhood 
and  school  district  within  his  or  their  jurisdiction,  the  amount 
apportioned  to  each  by  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction  ; 

(2.)  The  commissioner  or  commissioners  shall  then  proceed 
to  divide  and  apportion  the  balance  of  the  public  school 
moneys  (apportioned  according  to  population  for  the  support 
of  schools  within  his  or  their  jurisdiction)  to  the  separate 
neighborhoods,  school  districts  and  parts  of  school  districts, 
joint  with  parts  in  any  city  or  a  town  in  an  adjoining  county, 
in  proportion  to  the  number  of  children  in  each  (between  the 
ages  of  four  and  twenty-one),  as  the  same  shall  appear  from 
the  report  of  the  trustees  of  the  last  preceding  school  year  ; 
and  he  or  they  shall  specify,  in  such  apportionment,  the  amount 


128  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

apportioned  to  each  for  library  purposes  and  the  amount  for 
teachers'  wages ; 

(3.)  But  no  moneys  shall  be  apportioned  or  set  apart  by 
him  or  them  to  any  separate  neighborhood  or  school  district 
or  part  of  a  district  (joint  with  a  part  in  any  city,  or  with  a 
part  in  a  town  in  an  adjoining  county),  unless  it  shall  appear, 
from  a  report  of  the  trustees  thereof  for  the  last  preceding 
school  year,  that  a  public  school  was  supported  by  the  inha- 
bitants thereof  for  at  least  six  months  during  the  year  ending 
with  the  date  of  such  report,  by  a  duly  qualified  teacher, 
except  by  special  permission  of  the  State  Superintendent  of 
Public  Instruction  ; 

(4.)  The  commissioner  or  commissioners  aforesaid  shall  then 
set  apart,  to  each  town  within  his  or  their  jurisdiction,  the 
money  so  set  apart  and  apportioned  by  them  to  each  separate 
neighborhood  therein,  to  each  school  district  the  school-house 
of  which  is  therein,  and  to  each  part  of  a  joint  district  therein 
the  school-house  of  which  is  located  in  a  city  or  in  a  town  in 
an  adjoining  county ; 

(5.)  A  certificate  shall  then  be  made  by  the  commissioner 
or  commissioners,  showing  the  amount  apportioned  to  each 
separate  neighborhood,  school  district,  and  part  of  a  district, 
joint  as  hereinbefore  specified,  within  his  or  their  jurisdiction, 
and  it  shall  also  show  the  towns  in  which  they  are  respec- 
tively situated ; 

(6.)  One  copy  of  said  certificate,  signed  by  the  commis- 
sioner or  commissioners,  shall  be  sent  to  the  county  treasurer, 
and  one  copy  to  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion, and  to  the  supervisor  of  each  town ;  the  commissioner 
or  commissioners  shall  certify  the  amount  of  school  moneys, 
so  apportioned,  which  he  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  from  the 
county  treasurer,  and  the  portions  thereof  to  be  paid  by  him 
for  library  purposes  and  for  teachers'  wages  to  each  district, 
separate  neighborhood  and  part  of  a  district  (joint  with  a 
part  in  a  city,  or  with  any  town  in  an  adjoining  county) ; 

( 7.)  The  supervisor  shall  forthwith  make  a  copy  of  such  cer- 
tificate for  his  own  use,  and  deposit  the  original  in  the  office 
of  the  town  clerk  of  his  town,  and  the  share  of  the  several 
towns  so  apportioned  shall  be  paid  over  to  the  supervisors  on 
and  after  the  first  Tuesday  of  February  of  each  year ; 

(8.)  Sections  four  and  five  of  the  act  entitled  "An  act  to 
establish  free  schools  throughout  the  state,"  passed  April  12, 
1851,  are  hereby  repealed.     (Sec.  31,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  129 

For  the  purpose  of  facilitating  the  examination  of  this  long  section  it 
lias  been  broken  into  clauses,  separated  so  as  to  be  typographically  dis- 
tinct and  numbered,  but  otherwise  conforming  to  the  text  and  arran^e- 
ment  of  the  statute  book. 

The  first  clause  relates  to  the  duty  of  the  State  Superintendent  in 
making  the  apportionment.  It  differs  from  his  duty  under  the  law,  as 
it  stood  prior  to  1856,  in  this,  that  the  apportionment,  instead  of  being 
made  to  towns  and  cities,  is  hereafter  to  be  made  to  counties,  and  to 
such  cities  as  are  governed  by  special  school  laws.  The  practical  difference 
resulting  from  this  is,  that  under  the  sub-apportionment  made  by  the  school 
commissioner,  each  town,  or  rather  the  districts  in  each  town,  will  receive, 
over  and  above  their  respective  "  district  quotas,"  a  sum  of  money  pro- 
portioned, not  to  the  aggregate  population  of  the  town  as  compared 
with  that  of  the  whole  state,  but  to  the  number  of  persons  between  four 
and  twenty-one  years  of  age  in  each,  as  compared  with  the  entire  num- 
ber of  such  persons  in  the  county. 

The  apportionment  by  the  superintendent  is  made  in  the  following 
manner : 

First.  The  amount  to  which  each  city  and  county  is  entitled  for  salaries 
of  school  commissioners,  or,  in  the  ianguage  of  No.  27,  "for  and  on 
account  of  supervision,"  is  ascertained,  and  the  aggregate  of  those  sums 
is  deducted  from  the  $165,000  appropriated  to  schools  out  of  the  reve- 
nue of  the  United  States  deposit  fund,  unless  a  distinct  appropriation 
for  this  purpose  be  made  by  the  legislature. 

Second.  The  sum  of  $55,000,  part  of  the  appropriation  of  $165,000 
from  the  revenue  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund,  is  apportioned  to  the 
several  counties  and  cities,  in  proportion  to  their  population,  for  district 
libraries. 

Third.  The  residue  of  the  appropriation  from  the  revenue  of  the  United 
States  deposit  fund  is  added  to  the  appropriation  from  the  income  of 
the  school  fund  (now  $145,000)  and  the  proceeds  of  the  three-quarter 
mill  state  tax,  and  of  their  gross  sum  one-third  is  apportioned  to  the 
several  counties  and  cities  of  the  state,  as  follows : 

1.  The  whole  number  of  children  between  four  and  twenty-one  years 
of  age  belonging  to  all  the  separate  neighborhoods  of  this  state,  attached 
to  districts  in  adjoining  states,  is  ascertained,  and  the  product  of  that 
number,  by  thirty-three  cents,  is  deducted  from  the  one-third  of  the 
residue  of  public  school  money  ;  the  residue  of  such  third  is  then  appor- 
tioned as  follows,  viz : 

[Code.]  17 


130  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

2.  The  whole  number  of  districts  in  the  state,  computed  as  directed 
in  No.  31,  is  first  ascertained,  and  the  quotient,  obtained  by  dividing 
the  one-third  above  mentioned  by  the  whole  number  of  districts,  is 
taken  as  the  "  district  quota."  It  is  then  ascertained  to  what  number 
of  "  district  quotas"  each  district  having  its  school-house  in  a  county 
or  city  is  entitled,  and  the  multiple  of  such  number,  by  the  amount 
of  a  district  quota,  is  assigned  as  the  "  apportionment,  according  to 
districts,"  of  such  city  or  county. 

Fourth.  The  remaining  two-thirds  of  the  residue  of  public  money  is 
then  apportioned  to  the  respective  counties  and  cities  in  proportion  to 
their  population,  and  is  denominated,  in  the  certificate,  "  apportionment 
according  to  population."  It  is  only  this  sum  that  is  subject  to  reappor- 
tionment by  the  school  commissioners ;  and  every  special  permission 
granted  by  the  superintendent,  to  include  a  district  in  the  apportion- 
ment of  public  moneys,  relates  only  to  its  share  in  this  sum,  or  what 
has  been  denominated  its  "  pupil  quota,"  and  not  to  the  district  quota 
in  any  case,  or  to  library  quota  unless  specially  mentioned. 

The  second  clause  of  No.  32  declares  the  duty  of  the  school 
commissioners  with  respect  to  the  "  apportionment  according  to  dis- 
tricts," certified  to  them  by  the  State  Superintendent  for  their  respective 
counties.  This  duty  is  to  assign  to  each  separate  neighborhood  and 
district  the  district  quota  which  has  already  been  apportioned  to  it  by 
the  superintendent ;  that  is  to  say,  to  credit  each  separate  neighborhood 
and  district,  having  its  school-house  within  their  county,  with  its  quota 
or  quotas,  according  to  the  number  of  children  between  four  and 
twenty-one  years  of  age  in  the  separate  neighborhood,  and  according  to 
the  number  of  teachers  employed  at  the  same  time  for  six  months  or 
over  in  the  districts  respectively.  Inasmuch  as  the  apportionment  made 
by  the  superintendent  must  have  been  based  upon  a  report  furnished 
by  the  school  commisssoner  or  his  predecessor  in  office,  a  reference  to 
that  report  will  enable  him  to  determine  to  which  districts  a  double  or 
larger  quota  has  been  apportioned,  to  which  districts  a  single  quota,  and 
to  which  (in  consequence  of  no  report  having  been  received  from  it,  or 
of  its  having  failed  to  have  had  a  school  taught  by  a  qualified  teacher 
for  six  months  or  over)  none  at  all.  If  the  records  and  papers  of  the 
school  commissioners  are  properly  kept,  no  difficulty  will  be  found  in 
ascertaining  the  respective  quotas  of  the  districts  ;  and  the  requisite  infor- 
mation will  be  furnished  by  the  department,  in  cases  which  appear  sus- 
ceptible of  doubt.  In  case,  however,  the  commissioners  find  themselves 
unable  to  distribute  the  district  quotas  without  applying  for  instructions 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  131 

from  the  department,  they  should  not  on  this  account  delay  the  appor- 
tionment of  pupil  quotas  under  the  next  clause,  but  make  and  transmit 
their  certificates,  and  complete  the  same  by  a  supplemental  certificate,  in 
respect  to  the  district  quota,  as  soon  as  possible  afterwards.  The  super- 
visors should  not  be  delayed,  in  obtaining  from  the  county  treasurer 
what  moneys  may  be  wanted  for  the  immediate  payment  of  teachers  in 
their  respective  towns,  by  any  delay  in  the  commissioners  making  the 
apportionment  according  to  pupils. 

The  third  clause  of  No.  32  defines  the  duty  of  the  school  commis- 
sioners in  apportioning  the  pupil  and  library  quota  to  the  respective 
districts  within  their  jurisdiction.  For  this  purpose  they  are  to  ascer- 
tain from  the  reports  of  the  trustees  of  the  last  preceding  school  year 
the  number  of  children  between  the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one  years 
in  each  separate  neighborhood,  each  district,  and  each  part  within  their 
jurisdiction  of  a  joint  district,  the  remaining  part  or  parts  of  which  are 
situated  in  a  city,  or  in  some  town  or  towns  in  an  adjoining  county. 

It  may  happen  that  several  children  are  twice  enumerated  in  the 
reports  of  the  trustees,  being  claimed  as  residents  of  two  districts,  and 
that  the  trustees  have  not  yet  been  brought  to  agree  in  the  requisite 
corrections.  In  case  the  doubt  relates  only  to  which  of  two  districts, 
both  lying  entirely  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  commissioners,  certain 
pupils  should  be  assigned,  there  is  no  difficulty  in  arriving  at  the  whole 
number  which  is  to  constitute  the  divisor  of  the  money  apportioned  to 
the  county  according  to  population.  All  there  is  to  do  is  to  exclude 
them  from  being  counted  more  than  once  in  making  up  the  sum  total. 
Divide  the  money  apportioned  according  to  population  for  teachers' 
wages  by  the  whole  number  of  children,  and  the  quotient  will  be  the 
sum  to  which  each  district  is  entitled  for  each  pupil  resident  within  its 
bounds.  This  sum,  multiplied  by  the  admitted  number  of  pupils  in  each 
separate  neighborhood,  district  and  part,  will  give  the  teachers'  money 
to  which  such  neighborhood,  district  or  part  is  entitled  without  dispute. 
There  will  then  remain  unapportioned  a  sum  equal  to  the  number  of 
children  whose  residence  is  in  dispute,  multiplied  by  the  common 
multiple,  which  indicates  the  money  to  which  a  district  is  entitled  for 
each  pupil.  This  sum  should  be  stated  in  the  commissioner's  certificate 
as  "  reserved  for  apportionment  by  a  supplemental  certificate  ;"  and  after 
stating  in  the  certificate  the  sum  to  which  each  district  is  entitled, 
without  dispute,  the  additional  amount  to  which  it  may  be  entitled 
should  be  stated  as  "  contingent  upon  supplemental  apportionment." 
The  object  is,  that  the  apportionment  should  be  perfected  as  far  as  possi- 


132  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

ble  •without  waiting  for  the  final  determination  in  regard  to  the  small 
sums  in  dispute  upon  appeal  to  the  State  Superintendent  or  otherwise. 
The  same  method  is  applicable  to  the  apportionment  of  library  money 
■which  is  affected  in  the  same  way  by  any  doubt  as  to  tbe  district  in 
which  pupils  ought  legally  to  be  enumerated. 

A  case  may  arise  in  which  the  question  is,  not  whether  certain  chil- 
dren should  be  enumerated  as  residents  of  one  district  within  the  county 
or  of  another,  but  whether  they  should  be  enumerated  in  the  county  at 
all.  For  example,  the  trustees  of  a  district  may  have  enumerated  the 
pupils  at  a  boarding  school  who  are  the  children  of  residents  in  other 
counties  of  this  state,  and  may  not  have  corrected  their  report  at  the 
time  the  commissioners  are  called  upon  to  make  the  apportionment. 
To  include  such  children  will  have  the  effect  to  reduce  in  a  slight 
degree  the  apportionment  of  every  other  district  in  the  county.  To 
exclude  them,  however,  would  enhance  the  teachers'  money  of  every 
other  district,  ordinarily  by  an  amount  so  trifling  as  to  be  of  no  conse- 
quence to  those  districts,  while  it  would  deprive  the  district  claiming  to 
enumerate  them  of  an  amount  which  might  be  of  serious  importance  to 
it.  It  is  advisable,  therefore,  in  cases  where  any  serious  argument  can 
be  made  in  support  of  the  enumeration  of  such  disputed  residents,  to 
count  them  in  the"  aggregate  of  pupils  in  the  county,  but  to  exclude  them 
in  apportioning  the  money  to  the  district  in  which  they  are  claimed ; 
stating  at  the  same  time  in  the  certificate  the  amount,  to  which  a  decision 
in  favor  of  the  right  of  the  district  to  enumerate  them  would  entitle  it,  as 
"  contingent  upon  supplemental  apportionment."  If  its  claim  is  sus- 
tained by  the  department,  the  supplemental  certificate  should  be  filed ; 
if,  on  the  contrary,  the  claim  is  rejected,  the  sum  thus  reserved  may  be 
apportioned  in  a  supplemental  certificate,  or,  if  the  amount  is  very  small, 
may  remain  in  the  county  treasury  and  be  apportioned  with  that 
received  the  next  year. 

The  course  herein  recommended  accords  with  that  sanctioned  by 
Superintendent  Dix,  in  1834  (Common  School  Decisions,  page  181 ),  and 
enjoined  by  his  successors  at  various  times  since. 

After  the  amount  to  which  a  district  is  entitled  is  thus  ascertained,  a 
portion  thereof  is,  in  certain  cases,  to  be  deducted  for  the  support  of 
schools  for  colored  children.  For  instructions  upon  this  point,  see  the 
remarks  under  a  subsequent  section  relating  to  that  subject. 

A  deduction  is  also  to  be  made  for  the  public  moneys  apportioned  to 
any  district  on  account  of  Indian  children  who  may  be  enumerated  as 
residents  therein,  and  the   amount  apportioned  on  their  account  to  be 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  133 

separately  stated  in  the  certificate,  so  that  the  same  may  be  devoted 
exclusively  to  their  education  in  separate  Indian  schools,  if  they  elect  to 
attend  such  under  the  regulations  for  that  purpose  to  be  made  by  the 
State  Superintendent. 

The  fourth  clause  of  No.  32  restricts  the  apportionment  to  those 
neighborhoods,  districts  and  parts  as  to  which  it  appears,  from  the  report 
of  the  trustees  thereof  for  the  last  preceding  school  year,  that  a  public 
school  was  supported  by  the  inhabitants  and  taught  by  a  duly  qualified 
teacher  for  at  least  six  months  during  the  year  ending  with  the  date  of 
such  report,  except  by  special  permission  of  the  State   Superintendent. 

Section  2,  of  chap.  237  of  1838,  amended  the  Revised  Statutes  by 
requiring  school  to  be  kept/owr  months,  instead  of  three,  to  entitle  the 
district  to  an  apportionment,  "which  four  months,"  it  declared  in  express 
terms,  "  shall  be  kept  by  a  qualified  teacher  or  teachers  after  obtaining  a 
certificate  of  competency  from  the  school  inspectors."  This  was  a  legis- 
lative exposition  of  the  principle,  sufficiently  manifest  without  it,  that  a 
certificate  cannot  be  regarded  as  having  a  retroactive  operation,  and  this 
construction  has  been  enforced  by  the  department  in  applying  the  sta- 
tute of  1851,  which  extended  the  necessary  period  of  instruction  from 
four  months  to  six. 

Section  24,  title  2,  chap.  15,  part  1  of  the  Revised  Statutes  super- 
added, as  a  condition  to  be  fulfilled  before  a  district  can  be  entitled  to 
an  apportionment,  that  it  shall  appear  from  the  report  for  the  last  pre- 
ceding school  year  "  that  all  moneys  received  from  the  commissioners 
during  that  year  have  been  applied  to  the  compensation  of  such  teacher," 
i.  e.,  a  teacher  possessing  a  proper  certificate  of  qualification.  Sec.  11, 
chap.  480  of  1847,  reenacted  this  provision,  and  added  to  it  the  further 
condition  that  it  shall  appear  from  such  report  "  that  no  other  than  a 
duly  qualified  teacher  had,  at  any  time  during  the  year,  for  more  than 
one  month  been  employed  to  teach  the  school  in  said  district."  Neither 
of  these  provisions  have  been  repealed ;  and  a  failure  to  comply  with 
either  of  them  will  render  necessary  an  application  to  the  Superinten- 
dent of  Public  Instruction  for  an  order  granting  special  permission  to 
the  commissioners  to  include  the  delinquent  district  in  the  apportion- 
ment. 

As  every  order  of  the  department  is  in  its  nature  a  judicial  act,  and 
must  be  based  upon  legal  evidence,  an  affidavit,  duly  verified  by  the 
trustees  or  some  of  them,  must  be  forwarded,  stating,  1st.  The  delin- 
quency which  excludes  the  district  from  the  right  to  an  apportion- 
ment.    If  it  consist  in  the  fact  that  a  school  has  not  been  maintained 


134  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

for  six  months  by  a  qualified  teacher,  the  affidavit  should  set  forth 
precisely  how  long  it  was  taught  by  a  qualified  teacher,  and  for  how 
long  a  period,  if  any,  by  a  teacher  not  possessing  a  proper  certificate. 
If  it  consist  in  the  fact  that  the  money  apportioned  in  the  preceding 
year  was  not  wholly  expended,  it  should  state  how  much  was  expended, 
or  how  much  remained  unexpended.  All  money  is  to  be  regarded  as 
expended  for  which  the  trustees  have  given  a  valid  order  to  a  qualified 
teacher,  although  such  order  may  be  outstanding  on  the  1st  of  January, 
in  the  hands  of  such  teacher  or  of  his  assignee,  not  having  been  pre- 
sented to  the  supervisor  for  payment.  2d.  The  affidavit  must  state  with 
precision  the  facts  and  circumstances  which  occasioned  the  delinquency 
and  are  supposed  to  excuse  it.  The  statute  confers  the  power  upon  the 
superintendent  to  "  direct  an  apportionment  according  to  the  equitable 
circumstances"  where  an  apportionment  shall  not  have  been  made  to  any 
school  district  in  consequence  of  any  accidental  omission  to  mate  any 
report  required  by  law  or  to  comply  with  any  other  provision  of  law  or 
any  regulation.  It  is  not  the  object  of  the  statute  to  relieve  the  district, 
when  the  money  is  lost  by  a  willful  violation  of  duty  or  the  sheer  neg- 
lect of  the  trustees.  In  such  cases  the  law  gives  the  district  an  ample 
remedy  against  them,  personally;  and  it  is  against  public  policy  that  any 
encouragement  should  be  given  to  such  neglect,  by  relieving  them  from 
its  penalty.  Such  circumstances  as  the  destruction  of  a  school-house  by 
fire,  and  the  inability  after  suitable  effort  to  procure  rooms  for  tempo- 
rary use  as  a  school-house ;  the  casual  sickness  of  a  teacher,  so  late  in 
the  year  that  after  reasonable  effort  another  qualified  person  could  not 
be  found  to  complete  the  six  months'  instruction  before  the  31st  of  De- 
cember ;  such  and  similar  cases  of  unavoidable  accident  and  hardship, 
are  those  which  the  law  intends  as  the  subject  of  relief.  The  facts 
must  be  stated,  and  not  simply  the  conclusions  of  the  trustees  in  respect 
to  them,  for  it  is  the  duty  of  the  superintendent  to  judge  of  the  validity 
of  those  conclusions.  For  example,  the  trustees  may  state  in  all  honesty 
that  they  were  unable  to  procure  a  teacher,  where  if  the  facts  were 
fairly  set  forth  it  would  be  seen  that  the  only  reason  of  such  failure  was 
that  they  offered  an  entirely  inadequate  compensation. 

The  fifth  clause  of  No.  32  requires  the  commissioners,  after  ascertain- 
ing the  amount  apportioned  by  them  to  each  separate  neighborhood, 
district  and  part  district,  to  collect  and  arrange  those  amounts,  so  as  to 
show  what  and  how  many  of  them  are  to  be  set  apart  to  each  town 
within  their  jurisdiction.  Each  district  lying  wholly  within  their  juris- 
diction is  to  be  regarded,  for  this  purpose,  as  if  it  were  situated  entirely 


SCHOOL  MONEYS. 


135 


within  the  town  which  contains  its  school-house.  In  the  case  of  a 
district  which  possesses  two  or  more  school-houses,  the  whole  district  is 
to  be  regarded  as  being  in  that  town  in  which  its  principal  or  earliest 
built  school-house  is  situated.  To  each  town  is  also  to  be  set  apart  the 
apportionment  for  any  part  of  a  joint  district  lying  therein,  the  other 
part  of  which  joint  district  is  situated  in  a  city  or  in  an  adjoining  county. 
It  is  only  in  this  case  that  part  districts  are  recognized  in  the  appor- 
tionment. 

The  sixth  clause  of  No.  32  directs  the  commissioners  to  make  a 
certificate,  which  is  to  show  the  amount  apportioned  to  each  separate 
neighborhood,  district  and  part  of  a  joint  district  (in  the  case  above 
mentioned )  by  them,  and  also  the  amount  apportioned  by  the  State 
Superintendent  to  each  separate  neighborhood  and  to  each  district 
having  its  school-house  in  the  county.  These  should  be  separately 
stated.     The  following  form  may  be  adopted  for  the  certificate : 

The  undersigned,  school  commissioners  for  the  county  of 
do  hereby  certify  that  the  sums  of  money  set  opposite  to  the  several 
separate  neighborhoods,  school  districts  and  parts  of  districts,  within  their 
jurisdiction  in  said  county,  have  been  apportioned  to  them  respectively 
by  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  as  district  quotas,  to 
be  applied  to  the  payment  of  teachers,  ana  Dy  the  undersigned  com- 
missioners for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  and  for  library  purposes, 
according  to  the  headings  of  the  columns  in  which  said  sums  are  respec- 
tively set  down,  viz : 


Town  or , 

For  Teachers'  Wages 

For 
Libraries. 

Total. 

District 
quota. 

Pupil 
quota. 

$4  62 
30  10 
60  20 

0  00 

0  00 

$9  80 

35  70 

106  40 

15  40 

2  10 

$0  00 
2  80.5 
8  36 

1  22 

0  16.5 

$14  42 
68  60.5 

Dist.  No.  1 , 

Dist.  No.  2, 

174  96 

( Indians.) 

Do.  contingent,  on  supplemental  ap- 
portionment,   

16  62 
2  26  5 

Aggregate  (omitting  contingent),  . . . 

$94  92 

$167  30 

12  38.5 

$274   60.5 

The  table  is  to  be  continued  in  the  same  manner  for  each  town  in  the 
county. 

In  the  above  specimen  table,  District  No.  2  is  supposed  to  have  main- 
tained two  teachers  for  six  months,  while  District  No.  1  maintained  but 
one,  and  Joint  District  No.  3  to  have  been  entitled  to  no  district  quota, 


136  APPORTIONMENT  OF 

or  to  have  its  school-house  in  an  adjoining  county  or  city.  In  the  lat- 
ter case,  its  district  quota  will  appear  in  the  certificate  of  the  commis- 
sioners of  such  adjoining  county  or  city. 

The  separate  neighborhood  is  supposed  to  have  fourteen  residents, 
between  four  and  twenty-one  years  of  age;  No.  1,  51  ;  No.  2,  152; 
and  the  part  of  Joint  District  No.  3  to  have  twenty-two  admitted  resi- 
dents, and  to  claim  three  in  addition,  whose  residence  is  disputed,  and 
the  apportionment  on  account  of  tliem  is  therefore  set  down  as  con- 
tingent. 

The  seventh  clause  of  No.  32  directs  the  commissioners  to  send  one 
copy  of  their  certificate  to  the  county  treasurer  and  another  to  the  state 
superintendent. 

The  most  convenient  form  in  which  to  furnish  the  certificate  therein 
required,  to  be  sent  to  the  supervisor  of  each  town,  will  be  to  make  a 
transcript  of  so  much  of  the  table  of  apportionment  as  relates  to  the 
town,  and  annex  thereto  a  certificate  substantially  as  follows : 
To  the  supervisor  of  the  town  of 

"  The  undersigned,  school  commissioners  for  the  county  of 
hereby  certify  that  the  foregoing  table  is  a  transcript  of  so  much  of  the 
apportionment  of  school  moneys  for  the  year  1857   as  relates  to  the 
town  of  ,  in  said  county,  and  that  the  several  sums  set  oppo- 

site to  each  separate  neighborhood,  district  and  part  of  a  district,  are 
■  the  sums  which  are  to  be  paid  upon  the  orders  of  the  trustees  of  such 
neighborhoods  and  districts  respectively  for  teachers'  wages,  and  to  such 
trustees  for  library  purposes,  according  to  the  headings  of  the  columns 
in  which  such  sums  are  respectively  contained,  and  that  the  "total 
amount  of  school  moneys  so  apportioned,  which  you  are  now  entitled 
to  receive  from  the  county  treasurer,  is  $  ."     State  the  aggregate, 

excluding  all  sums  contingent  upon  supplemental  apportionment. 

When  the  right  to  any  moneys  contingently  apportioned  has  been 
finally  determined,  the  commissioners  should  transmit  to  the  supervisor 
of  the  town  a  certificate  stating  that  fact,  and  that  he  is  entitled  to  re- 
ceive from  the  county  treasurer  the  further  sums  of  for  teach- 
ers' wages,  and  for  library  purposes,  stating  the  districts  to 
which  they  have  been  adjudged  to  belong.  They  should  also  transmit 
to  the  county  treasurer  a  supplemental  certificate  of  apportionment,  in 
the  form  above  given,  except  that  it  should  state  that  "  the  sums  of 
money  heretofore  contingently  apportioned  have  been  finally  appor- 
tioned to  the  respective  districts,  &c,  opposite  to  which  they  are  set,  to 


SCHOOL  MONEYS.  137 

be  applied  to  teachers'  wages  and  to  library  purposes,  according  to  the 
heading  of  the  columns,"  &c. 

No.  33.  When  the  census  or  returns,  upon  which  an  appor- 
tionment is  to  be  made,  shall  be  so  far  defective  in  respect  to 
any  county,  city  or  town  as  to  render  it  impracticable  for  the 
superintendent  to  ascertain  the  share  of  school  moneys  which 
ought  then  to  be  apportioned  to  such  county,  city  or  town,  he 
shall  ascertain,  by  the  best  evidence  in  his  power,  the  facts 
upon  which  the  ratio  of  such  apportionment  shall  depend, 
and  shall  make  the  apportionment  accordingly.  ( Sec.  6,  title 
2,  chap.  15,  part  1,  Revised  Statutes.) 

This  section  is  followed  in  the  Revised  Statutes  by  another,  which 
appears  to  be  rendered  inoperative  by  the  statute  of  1856,  superseding 
the  apportionment  among  towns  by  the  State  Superintendent.  As, 
however,  it  has  never  been  expressly  repealed,  and  the  anomalous  con- 
dition of  one  county  (Schuyler)  suggests  a  case  in  which  an  apportion- 
ment between  the  towns  of  a  county  may  still  be  necessary,  the  section, 
7,  is  here  inserted.  For  similar  reasons,  and  for  the  further  one 
that  so  much  of  it  as  directs  the  apportionment  made  by  the  superin- 
tendent to  be  certified  to  the  comptroller,  has  not  been  replaced  by  any 
subsequent  statute,  section  No.  8  of  the  same  title  of  the  Eevised 
Statutes  is  also  here  inserted. 

§  7.  Whenever,  in  consequence  of  the  division  of  a  town,  or  the 
erection  of  a  new  town  in  any  county,  the  apportionment  then  in  force 
shall  become  unjust,  as  between  two  or  more  of  the  towns  of  such 
county,  the  superintendent  shall  make  a  new  apportionment  of  the 
school  moneys  next  to  be  distributed  amongst  such  towns,  ascertaining 
by  the  best  evidence  in  his  power  the  facts  upon  which  the  ratio  ot 
apportionment,  as  to  such  towns,  shall  depend. 

§  8.  The  superintendent  shall  certify  each  apportionment  made  by 
him  to  the  comptroller,  and  shall  give  immediate  notice  thereof  to  the 
clerk  of  each  county  interested  therein  and  to  the  clerk  of  the  city  and 
county  of  New-York ;  stating  the  amount  of  moneys  apportioned  to  his 
county  and  to  each  town  and  city  therein,  and  the  time  when  the  same 
will  be  payable  to  the  treasurer  of  such  county  or  to  the  chamberlain 
of  the  city  of  New -York. 

No*  34.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  clerk  of  the  board  of 
supervisors  in  each  county  of  this  state,  on  the  last  day  of 
December  in  each  year,  to  transmit  to  the  Superintendent  of 

J  Code.]  18 


138  PAYMENT  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS 

common  schools  [Public  Instruction]  certified  copies  of  all 
resolutions  and  proceedings  of  the  board  of  supervisors,  of 
which  he  is  clerk,  passed  or  had  during  the  preceding  year, 
relating  to  the  raising  of  any  money  for  school  or  library  pur- 
poses and  to  report  particularly  the  amount  of  such  moneys 
directed  to  be  raised  each  town  of  said  county ;  and  in  case  it 
shall  not  appear  that  the  amount  required  by  law  to  be  raised 
for  school  and  library  purposes  has  been  directed  to  be  raised 
during  the  year  by  the  board  of  supervisors  of  any  county, 
the  Superintendent  of  common  schools  [Public  Instruction] 
and  the  comptroller  may  direct  that  the  money  appropriated 
by  the  state,  and  apportioned  to  such  county,  be  withheld 
until  the  amount  that  may  be  deficient  shall  be  raised,  or  that 
so  much  only  of  the  money  apportioned  to  such  county  be 
paid  to  the  treasurer  thereof  as  shall  be  equal  to  the  amount 
directed  to  be  raised  therein  by  the  supervisors  of  such  county; 
and  in  such  case  the  balance  so  withheld  shall  be  added  to 
the  principal  of  the  common  school  fund.  ( Sec.  3,  chap.  330 
of  1839.) 

It  will  be  seen  by  No.  41,  post,  that  an  additional  remedy  is  provided 
for  the  case  where,  though  the  board  of  supervisors  have  directed  the 
raising  of  the  school  tax  upon  their  county,  the  actual  collection  and 
payment  thereof  into  the  state  treasury  is  delayed  beyond  the  proper 
time. 


OF  THE  PAYMENT  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS  INTO  THE  STATE 
TREASURY,  AND  OF  THEIR  DISTRIBUTION. 

No.  35.  Dues  to  the  state,  which  have  heretofore  been  paid 
to  the  secretary  of  state  in  the  capacity  of  superintendent  of 
common  schools,  shall  hereafter  be  paid  into  the  state  trea- 
sury; and  all  balances,  now  standing  to  the  credit  of  the 
superintendent  of  common  schools  or  the  Superintendent  of 
Public  Instruction,  shall  be  immediately  transferred  to  the 
credit  of  the  treasurer  of  the  state.  ( Sec.  1,  chap.  228  of  1854. ) 

No.  36.  The  treasurer  shall  transfer  from  one  depository  to 
another,  by  a  draft  to  be  countersigned  and  entered  by  the 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  any  school  moneys 
standing  to  his  credit ;  and  no  such  moneys  shall  be  transfer- 
red from  one  depository  to  another  except  by  such  draft 
(Sec.  2,  chap.  228  of  1854:.) 


AND  THEIR  DISTRIBUTION.  139 

No.  37.  All  moneys,  now  authorized  by  law  to  be  paid  or 
advanced  by  the  superintendent  of  common  schools  or  tiie 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  and  all  moneys  which 
shall  hereafter  be  authorized  to  be  paid  or  advanced  out  of 
the  school  moneys,  shall  be  paid  by  the  treasurer  upon  the 
warrant  of  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  ;  but  no 
warrant  shall  be  drawn,  unless  authorized  by  law,  and  shall 
refer  to  the  law  under  which  it  is  drawn.  ( Sec.  3,  chap.  228 

of  1854:.) 

This  provision  is  "  limited  in  its  application  to  school  moneys  raised 
by  taxation"  by  the  third  section  of  chap.  18  of  1855,  No.  39,  post. 
So  much  of  the  school  moneys  as  are  derived  from  the  revenues  of  the 
school  fund  and  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund  are  distributed  upon 
the  warrant  of  the  comptroller,  according  to  a  certificate  made  to  him 
by  the  superintendent  of  the  share  of  such  moneys  to  which  each  county 
and  city  is  entitled. 

No.  38.  The  said  superintendent  shall  countersign  and  enter 
all  checks  drawn  by  the  treasurer  in  payment  of  his  warrants, 
and  all  receipts  for  school  moneys  paid  to  the  treasurer,  and 
no  such  receipt  shall  be  evidence  of  payment  unless  so  coun-. 
tersigned.  (Sec.  4,  chap.  228  c/1854.) 

Limited,  as  mentioned  in  note  to  No.  37. 

No.  39.  The  act  entitled  "  An  act  in  relation  to  school 
moneys,"  passed  April  15,  1854,  shall  be  limited  in  its  appli- 
cation to  school  moneys  raised  by  taxation.  ( Sec.  3,  chap.  18 
o/1855.) 

The  act  herein  mentioned  consists  of  the  four  preceding  sections, 
Nos.  35,  36,  37  38. 

No.  40.  The  sum  annually  to  be  distributed  for  the  encour- 
agement of  common  schools  shall  be  paid  on  the  1st  day  of 
February  in  every  year,  on  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller, 
to  the  treasurers  of  the  several  counties  and  the  chamberlain 
of  the  city  of  New- York.  ( Sec.  12,  title  2,  chap.  15,  pan  1  of 
ltevised  Statutes. ) 

The  article  in  which  the  preceding  section  is  contained  is  entitled, 
"  Of  the  Distribution  of  the  Common  School  Fund ;"  and  the  sum 
annually  to  be  distributed,  at  the  time  that  article   took  effect,  was  the 


140  PAYMENT  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS 

appropriation  from  the  revenue  of  the  common  school  fund,  as  stated  in 
the  note  to  No.  25.  By  chap.  237  of  1838,  the  sums  of  $110,000  for 
teachers'  wages,  and  $55,000  for  district  libraries,  were  appropriated 
from  the  income  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund,  and  directed  to  be 
distributed  "  in  like  manner  and  upon  the  like  conditions  as  the  school 
moneys  are  now  or  shall  be  hereafter  distributed."  The  sum  required 
to  be  distributed  on  the  first  day  of  February,  on  the  warrant  of  the 
comptroller,  does  not  include  the  proceeds  of  the  state  tax  for  the  sup- 
port of  schools  which  are  paid  on  the  warrant  of  the  superintendent. 
See  No.  37  and  note  thereto. 

No.  41.  The  comptroller  is  hereby  authorized  to  withhold 
the  payment  of  any  moneys,  to  which  any  county  may  be 
entitled  from  the  appropriation  of  the  incomes  of  the  school 
fund  and  the  United  States  deposit  fund  for  the  support  of 
schools,  until  satisfactory  evidence  shall  be  furnished  to  him 
that  all  moneys  required  by  law  to  be  raised  by  taxation  upon 
such  county,  for  the  support  of  schools  throughout  the  state, 
have  been  collected  and  paid,  or  accounted  for  to  the  state 
treasurer;  and  whenever,  in  consequence  of  the  failure  of 
any  county  to  pay  such  moneys,  there  shall  be  a  deficiency 
of  moneys  in  the  treasury  applicable  to  the  payment  of  school 
moneys  to  which  any  other  county  may  be  entitled,  the  trea- 
surer and  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  are  hereby 
authorized  to  make  a  temporary  loan  of  the  amount  so  defi- 
cient ;  and  such  loan,  and  the  interest  thereon  until  payment 
shall  be  made  to  the  treasury,  shall  be  a  charge  upon  the 
county  or  counties  in  default,  in  proportion  to  the  amount 
and  duration  of  its  or  their  defalcation  respectively,  and  shall 
be  added  to  the  amount  of  state  tax,  and  levied  upon  such 
county  or  counties  by  the  board  of  supervisors  thereof,  at  the 
next  ensuing  assessment,  and  shall  be  paid  into  the  treasury 
in  the  same  manner  as  other  taxes.  (Sec.  2,  chap.  18  of  1855.) 

The  object  of  the  legislature  in  the  preceding  provision  was  to  pre- 
vent the  moneys  raised  for  school  purposes  in  the  several  counties  from 
being  withheld  from  the  state  treasury,  and  being  temporarily  employed 
to  supply  the  deficiencies  in  the  county  treasuries  arising  from  delay 
in  the  collection  of  taxes  imposed  for  county  purposes.  It  is  therefore 
required  that  the  county's  proportion  of  the  school  tax  should  have 
been  actually  collected,  and  either  paid  into  the  state  treasury  or  accounted 
for — as  it  might  be  by  receipts  from  the  supervisors  of  their  respective 


AND  THEIR  DISTRIBUTION.  141 

towns,  showing  the  payment  to  them,  on  account  of  the  apportionment 
to  their  towns  made  by  the  State  Superintendent  and  the  school  com- 
missioners, of  an  amount  equal  in  tne  aggregate  to  the  school  tax  due 
from  the  county — before  the  county  treasurer  is  authorized  to  require 
from  the  comptroller  a  warrant  for  the  amount  apportioned  to  his  county 
from  the  incomes  of  the  school  fund  and  United  States  deposit  fund. 

It  also  subjects  the  county  to  the  payment  of  interest  upon  so  much 
of  its  school  tax  as  is  withheld  from  the  state  treasury,  whenever  it 
becomes  necessary  to  make  a  loan  to  furnish  the  state  treasury  with  the 
funds  for  the  payment  of  school  moneys  to  any  other  county  which  is 
not  in  default,  and  is  therefore  entitled  to  immediate  payment. 

It  is  obviously,  therefore,  the  duty  of  the  county  treasurer,  for  the 
purpose  of  protecting  his  county  from  the  liability  to  the  payment  of 
interest  on  a  loan  to  be  made  on  its  account,  to  regard  the  first  moneys 
which  come  to  his  hands  from  the  town  collectors  as  belonging  exclu- 
sively to  the  school  fund.  Other  claims  may  be  postponed  without 
incurring  a  charge  for  interest,  while  this  cannot.  The  power  and  duty 
of  the  treasurer  and  State  Superintendent  to  make  loans  under  this  sec- 
tion is  not  suspended,  when,  as  is  often  the  case,  the  legislature  extends 
the  time  for  the  collection  of  taxes ;  and  it  would  be  most  unjust  that 
the  schools  should  suffer  in  those  counties  which  have  collected  their 
taxes  promptly,  for  want  of  the  exercise  of  that  power,  at  the  expense 
of  the  counties  where  their  collection  is  delayed,  either  by  an  extension 
of  the  time  for  collection  or  by  the  return  of  non-resident  lands.  In 
the  latter  case,  the  county  treasurer  can  obtain  the  money  or  a  credit 
thereof  from  the  comptroller,  for  all  the  arrears  of  taxes  admitted  by 
him,  and  should  not  therefore  subject  the  school  tax  to  any  deduc- 
tion or  reservation  on  account  of  returned  lands. 

No.  42.  The  treasurer  of  each  county,  and  the  chamberlain 
of  the  city  of  New-York,  shall  apply  for  and  receive  the 
school  moneys  apportioned  to  their  respective  counties,  as  soon 
as  the  same  become  payable.  (Sec.  13,  title 2,  chap.  15,  part  1, 
Revised  Statutes.) 

No.  43.  Each  treasurer  receiving  such  moneys  shall  give 
notice  in  writing  to  some  one  or  more  of  the  commissioners 
of  common  schools  [supervisor]  of  each  town  or  city  in  his 
county,  of  the  amount  apportioned  to  such  town  or  city,  and 
shall  hold  the  same,  subject  to  the  order  of  such  [supervisor] 


142  PAYMENT  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS 

commissioners.     (Sec.   14,   title  2,    chap.   15,  part   1,   Revised 
Statutes.) 

No.  32,  ante,  provides  for  a  notice,  from  the  school  commissioners  to 
the  supervisor  of  each  town,  of  the  amount  apportioned  thereto.  The 
only  object  of  a  notice  from  the  treasurer  is  that  the  supervisor  should 
be  informed  that  the  money  is  actually  in  the  treasury,  subject  to  his 
order.  While  the  supervisor  should  not  wait  for  such  notice,  the  obli- 
gation to  give  which  is  now  rather  matter  of  argument  than  of  express 
injunction,  there  is  an  obvious  propriety  in  the  treasurer  giving  it  at 
the  earliest  possible  day. 

No.  44.  The  public  school  moneys  heretofore  paid  to  town 
superintendents,  or  on  their  orders,  shall  be  paid  only  to  the 
supervisors  of  the  towns.  (  Sec.  19,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

Treasurers  of  counties  have  no  right  to  deduct  from  the  amount  of 
the  school  moneys  apportioned  to  each  town  a  commission  of  one  per 
cent.  They  are  unquestionably  entitled  to  such  a  commission,  under 
sec.  26,  1  II.  S.,  370,  on  the  moneys  received  and  paid  by  them  for  the  use 
of  the  common  schools  ;  but  they  have  no  right  to  diminish  the  amount 
of  the  moneys  placed  in  their  hands  for  distribution,  under  an  appor- 
tionment, by  the  superintendent.  Their  commission  is  a  charge  upon 
the  county,  and  not  upon  the  common  school  fund.  (Com.  School,  D^c's, 
279.) 

No.  45.  Before  the  county  treasurer  of  any  county  shall 
pay  over  to  the  supervisor  of  any  town  in  said  county  the 
public  school  moneys  apportioned  for  the  support  of  schools 
therein,  he  shall  require  the  said  supervisor  to  deposit  with 
him  a  bond  to  the  treasurer,  in  behalf  of  the  town,  executed 
by  said  supervisor,  with  two  or  more  sufficient  sureties,  to  be 
approved  by  said  treasurer,  in  the  penalty  of  double  the 
amount  of  said  school  moneys,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  dis- 
bursement, safe  keeping  and  accounting  for  such  moneys,  and 
of  all  other  school  moneys  that  may  come  into  his  hands  from 
any  other  source ;  and  whenever  the  said  bond  shall  be  for- 
feited, it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  county  treasurer  to  prosecute 
for  the  penalty  of  the  same,  in  his  own  name,  in  behalf  of  the 
town,  and  the  money  recovered  shall  be  paid  over  to  the 
supervisor  of  the  town  succeeding  the  supervisor  in  default. 
{Sec.  20,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 


AND  THEIR  DISTRIBUTION.  143 

The  bond  to  be  given  under  this  section  must  be  renewed  every  year, 
as  its  penalty  in  each  case  is  to  be  double  the  amount  of  the  school 
moneys  then  to  be  paid.     Its  form  may  be  as  follows  : 

Know  all  men  by  these   presents,  that  we,  John   Doe,  supervisor  of 

the  town  of ,   in  the   county  of  ,  and  Richard  Roe  and 

Samuel  Styles,  of  the  same  town  (or  as  their  residence  respectively 
may  be),   as  his  sureties,   are  held    and  firmly  bound   unto  Stephen 

Holdfast,  treasurer  of  the  county  of  ,  in  the  penalty  of 

dollars  and cents  (being  double  the  amount  of  the  public  moneys 

apportioned  for  the  support  of  schools  in  the  town  of ,  aforesaid  ), 

to  be  paid  to  the  said  Stephen  Holdfast,  treasurer,  his  successors  in 
office,  attorney  or  assigns  ;  to  which  payment,  well  and  truly  to  be  made, 
we  bind  ourselves  jointly  and  severally  by  these  presents,  sealed  with  our 
seals  and  dated  this day  of ,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord . 

The  condition  of  this  obligation  is  such,  that  if  the  above  bounden 
John  Doe,  supervisor,  shall  faithfully  disburse,  safely  keep  and  justly 
account  for  the  school  moneys  apportioned  as  aforesaid,  and  all  other 
school  moneys  that  may  come  into  his  hands  from  any  other  source, 
then  this  obligation  to  be  void,  otherwise  to  remain  in  full  force  and 
virtue. 

John  Doe.  [  l.  s.  ] 

Richard  Roe.        [  l.  s.  ] 
Samuel  Styles.     [  l.  s.  ] 

This  bond  as  a  matter  of  prudence  should  be  acknowledged  before  a 
commissioner  of  deeds  or  other  officer  authorized  to  take  acknowledg- 
ments, and  the  sureties  should  be  required  to  indorse  upon  the  bond  an 
affidavit  that  each  of  them  is  a  freeholder,  and  worth  the  amount  of  the 
penalty  over  and  above  all  debts  incurred  or  liabilities  assumed  by  him. 
It  is  only  upon  such  an  affidavit  that  bonds  required  in  legal  proceedings 
are  approved  ;  and  it  is  a  matter  of  justice  to  the  county  treasurer  that 
he  should  protect  himself  from  personal  liability  for  taking  an  insufficient 
bond  by  following  the  legal  method  of  ascertaining  its  sufficiency.  If, 
after  such  affidavits  are  indorsed  on  the  bond,  the  county  treasurer  is 
satisfied  with  the  sureties,  he  should1  indorse  his  approval  in  the  follow- 
ing form : 

I  hereby  approve  the  within  bond,  as  to  its  form  and  manner  of  exe- 
cution and  the  sufficiency  of  the  sureties  therein.     Dated . 

Stephen  Holdfast, 
•  Treasurer  of County. 


144  PAYMENT  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS. 

No.  46.  In  case  the  commissioners  [supervisor]  of  any 
such  city  or  town  shall  not  apply  for  and  receive  such 
moneys,  or  in  case  there  are  no  commissioners  appointed  in 
the  same  before  the  next  receipt  of  moneys  apportioned  to 
the  county,  the  moneys  so  remaining  with  the  treasurer  shall 
be  retained  by  him,  and  be  added  to  the  moneys  next  received 
by  him  for  distribution  from  the  Superintendent  of  common 
schools  [Public  Instruction],  and  be  distributed  therewith 
and  in  the  same  proportion.  ( Sec.  15,  tit.  2,  chap.  15,  part  1 
of  Revised  Statutes. ) 

The  commissioners  referred  to  in  this  section  are  not  the  school  com- 
missioners of  the  county,  but  "  commissioners  of  common  schools,"  a 
board  of  town  officers,  whose  office  was  abolished  by  chap.  133  of  1843, 
and  their  duties  devolved  upon  the  "  town  superintendent  of  common 
schools."  All  the  duties  of  town  superintendents  in  relation  to  the 
receipt  and  disbursement  of  school  moneys  being,  by  chap.  179  of  1856, 
devolved  upon  the  supervisors,  the  latter  officer  stands  in  the  place  of 
the  former  town  commissioners  of  common  schools  for  all  the  purposes 
of  the  preceding  section. 

The  case  provided  for  by  this  section  is  now  of  very  improbable 
occurrence ,  and  the  mode  of  disposing  of  the  money  remaining  with 
the  treasurer  is  inconsistent  with  the  requisitions  of  subsequent  statutes. 
So  far  as  the  money  apportioned  to  the  town  for  "  district  quotas"  is 
concerned,  it  is  not  a  thing  of  proportion,  as  between  the  towns  of  the 
county ;  and  the  right  of  a  district  thereto,  having  vested  for  any  one 
year,  is  not  to  be  affected  by  a  different  distribution  made  in  the  suc- 
ceeding year.  The  same  is  true  in  relation  to  the  money  apportioned 
for  pupil  quotas  and  for  libraries.  The  possession  by  the  county 
treasurer  must  be  regarded,  so  far  as  the  rights  of  the  districts  are  con- 
cerned, precisely  as  its  possession  by  the  supervisor  would  have  been, 
had  the  latter  received  it,  as  he  ought  to  have  done.  Further  legislation 
may  be  necessary  to  provide  a  proper  remedy  for  the  districts,  in  the 
default  of  a  supervisor  to  receive  and  hold  the  money  as  their  trustee ; 
but  so  much  of  the  section  as  might^seem  to  authorize  a  distribution  of 
it  by  the  treasurer  to  the  several  towns  of  his  county  must,  from  its 
inconsistency  with  the  existing  law,  be  deemed  to  be  repealed. 

No.  47.  The  amount  of  money  necessary  to  pay  the  salaries 
of  the  school  commissioners,  and  which  shall  be  annually 
apportioned  by  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction 


DISBURSEMENT  OF  MQNEYS.  145 

from  the  United  States  deposit  fund  for  that  purpose,  as  here- 
inbefore provided,  shall  be  drawn  from  the  income  of  that 
fund,  upon  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller,  and  retained  in  the 
treasury  to  be  paid  out  by  the  treasurer  to  the  several  school 
commissioners,  upon  the  order  of  the  said  State  Superin- 
tendent. (Sec.  32,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

OF  THE  CUSTODY  AND  DISBURSEMENT  OF  SCHOOL 
MONEYS  BY  THE  SUPERVISORS  OF  TOWNS. 

No.  48.  Whenever  the  board  of  supervisors  of  any  county 
in  this  state  shall  have  appointed  a  commissioner  or  commis- 
sioners, in  pursuance  of  this  act,  and  such  officers  shall  have 
taken  the  constitutional  oath  of  office,  henceforth,  and  after 
that  time,  the  office  of  town  superintendent  of  common 
schools  for  the  several  towns  in  such  county  shall  be  abol- 
ished, and  each  town  superintendent  shall  forthwith  pay  over 
to  the  supervisor  of  his  town  all  school  moneys  unexpended, 
with  a  fall  statement  of  all  moneys  received  and  paid  out  by 
him  since  the  last  annual  report  made  by  him  or  his  prede- 
cessor, and  of  the  moneys  remaining  in  his  or  his  predecessor's 
hands  at  the  time  of  making  such  report.  He  shall  also 
specify  in  such  statement  the  last  apportionment  made  to  the 
school  districts,  separate  neighborhoods  and  parts  of  joint 
districts  in  his  town,  and  shall  also  state  specifically  the  part 
of  such  apportionment  paid  to  each,  and  the  balance  thereof 
due  to  each.  If  it  shall  appear  that  any  former  town  super- 
intendent has  neglected  or  refused  to  render  to  his  successor 
in  office  such  full  statement  of  all  moneys  received  and  paid 
out  by  him  during  his  official  term  or  terms,  it  shall  be  the 
duty  of  the  commissioners  created  under  this  act,  or  any  one 
of  them,  to  require  such  delinquent  town  superintendent,  by 
notice  in  writing,  to  make  such  return  to  the  supervisor  of  his 
town  within  twenty  days  from  the  date  of  such  service ;  and 
if,  after  having  been  duly  served  with  such  notice,  he  still 
neglects  or  refuses  to  make  such  return  as  aforesaid,  or  show 
good  cause  why  he  has  not  done  so,  he  shall  be  guilty  of  a 
misdemeanor,  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  supervisor  of 
the  town,  or  of  any  commissioner  created  by  this  act,  to  sue 
for  and  recover  all  moneys  in  the  hands  of  any  defaulting 
town  superintendent.  (Sec.  17,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

[Code.]  19 


146  CUSTODY  AND  DISBURSEMENT 

No.  49.  Every  supervisor  who  shall  embezzle  any  of  such 
moneys,  or  any  moneys  that  shall  come  into  his  hands  by 
virtue  of  this  act,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  a  misdemeanor. 
(Sec.  18,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

No.  50.  The  said  supervisors,  in  the  disbursement  of  and 
accounting  for  school  moneys  which  shall  come  into  their 
hands,  shall  be  governed  by  the  same  laws  and  rules  as  are 
now  applicable  to  town  superintendents.  Each  of  the  said 
supervisors  shall  keep  a  just  and  true  account  of  all  the  school 
moneys  received  and  disbursed  by  him  during  each  year,  and 
shall  lay  the  same,  with  proper  vouchers,  before  the  board 
of  town  auditors,  at  each  annual  meeting  of  such  board.  (Sec. 
21,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

The  law  which  governed  town  superintendents,  and  now  governs  the 
supervisors  in  the  disbursement  of  so  much  of  the  school  moneys  as  is 
apportioned  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages,  requires  them  to  pay  it 
upon  the  written  orders  drawn  upon  them  by  a  majority  of  the  trustees 
of  each  district  in  favor  of  qualified  teachers.  If  the  order  is  regular 
upon  its  face  —  that  is  to  say,  if  it  bears  the  signature  of  a  majority  of  the 
persons  acting  in  fact  as  trustees  of  a  district,  under  color  of  an  election, 
in  favor  of  a  person  whom  it  states  to  be  a  duly  qualified  teacher  em- 
ployed by  them  in  the  district  during  the  year  in  which  it  is  drawn  and 
in  payment  of  his  wages  as  such  teacher — it  is  a  sufficient  voucher  for 
the  supervisor,  and  it  is  not  for  him  to  inquire  whether  the  trustees 
have  exceeded  their  authority  or  acted  improperly  in  drawing  the  order. 
If  presented  by  any  other  person  than  the  teacher  in  whose  favor  it  is 
drawn,  it  should  bear  his  written  indorsement,  or  order  for  payment 
to  a  specified  person. 

Library  money  may  be  paid  to  any  person  upon  the  written  order  of 
a  majority  of  the  trustees,  or  to  either  of  the  trustees  upon  the  written 
receipt  of  a  majority  of  them. 

The  account  to  be  kept  under  this  section  may  be  a  simple  cash 
account,  in  which  the  supervisor,  personally  and  in  his  individual  name, 
is  charged  with  all  school  moneys  received  by  him  and  credited  with 
each  payment,  specifying  the  date,  the  person  to  whom  and  the  account 
on  which  it  was  made.  It  would  conduce  to  accuracy  and  convenience, 
in  passing  his  accounts  before  the  board  of  town  auditors,  to  number 
each  credit  consecutively,  and  to  affix  the  same  number  to  the  ordcrf 
receipt  or  other  voucher  to  be  produced  in  proof  of  payment  and  in 


OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS.  147 

support  of  such  credit.  This  account  should  be  kept  in  a  bound  book, 
to  be  handed  over  to  his  successor  in  office,  and  a  transcript  of  such 
account  be  drawn  off,  and,  with  the  accompanying  vouchers,  be  pre- 
sented to  the  board  of  town  auditors  for  their  examination.  As  that 
examination  may  take  place  before  the  close  of  his  official  term,  it  would 
be  well,  upon  its  completion,  to  have  the  town  auditors  enter  upon  the 
original  account,  in  the  blank  book,  their  certificate  that  they  have 
examined  such  account  up  to  and  including  the  last  preceding  entry 
(giving  its  date)  and  the  vouchers  therefor  and  have  audited  and  allowed 
the  same. 

In  addition  to  the  cash  account  of  the  individual  supervisor,  a  con- 
tinuous account  is  to  be  kept  between  each  district  and  the  supervisor, 
officially,  without  break  or  change  when  a  new  incumbent  succeeds  to 
the  office,  as  will  be  explained  under  No.  51. 

The  board  of  town  auditors  is  required  by  law  to  meet  annually  in 
each  town,  at  the  place  of  holding  the  last  town  meeting,  on  the  last 
Thursday  preceding  the  annual  meeting  of  the  board  of  supervisors  of  the 
county.  (  Chap.  228  of  1844.)  It  consists,  for  the  purpose  of  examining 
the  supervisor's  account,  of  the  town  clerk  and  justices  of  the  peace,  or 
any  two  of  the  justices  of  the  peace.  The  supervisor,  who  is  ordinarily 
a  member,  cannot,  of  course,  act  in  his  own  case.  The  account  to  be 
presented  to  them,  is  to  be  accompanied  by  an  affidavit,  attached  to  and 
to  be  filed  with  such  account,  made  by  the  person  presenting  or  claim- 
ing the  same,  that  th?  items  of  such  account  are  correct,  and  that  the 
disbursements  charged  therein  have  been  in  fact  made.  ( Sec.  2,  chap. 
490  of  18il.) 

No.  51.  The  said  supervisor  shall,  within  fifteen  days  after 
the  termination  of  his  office,  render  to  his  successor  in  office 
a  just  and  true  account,  in  writing,  of  all  school  moneys  by 
him  received  before  the  time  of  rendering  such  account,  and 
of  the  manner  in  which  the  same  or  any  part  thereof  shall 
have  been  expended  by  him ;  and  the  account  so  rendered 
shall  be  delivered  by  such  successor  in  office  to  the  town 
clerk,  to  be  filed  and  recorded  in  his  office ;  and  the  town 
clerk  shall  forthwith  send  a  copy  of  such  account  to  the 
school  commissioner.  Each  supervisor  shall  keep  a  bound 
blank  book,  in  which  all  his  receipts  and  disbursements  of 
school  moneys  shall  be  entered  by  him,  specifying  from 
whom,  and  the  purpose  for  which  they  were  received ;  and 
to  whom,  and  the  purpose  for  which  they  were  paid  out. 


148 


CUSTODY  AND  DISBURSEMENT 


The  cost  of  such  book  shall  be  a  charge  upon  his  town ;  and 
said  book  shall  be  delivered  to  his  successor  in  office.  (Sec. 
22,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

The  account  to  be  rendered  by  the  supervisor  to  his  successor  in 
office,  includes  as  well  that  portion  thereof  which  has  been  examined 
by  the  town  auditors  as  that  which  relates  to  his  subsequent  receipts 
and  disbursements.  Inasmuch  as  it  is  to  be  filed  and  recorded  in  the 
office  of  the  town  clerk,  it  must,  independent  of  and  in  addition  to  the 
original  cash  account,  be  entered  upon  the  blank  book. 

The  object  of  an  account  book  to  be  kept  by  the  supervisor  and  to 
pass  to  his  successors  in  office,  is  to  enable  the  latter  to  ascertain  at  any 
future  time  the  state  of  the  accounts  of  each  district  with  any  of  their 
predecessors  at  any  given  date.  To  effect  this  object  it  is  essential  that 
a  separate  account  should  be  kept  with  the  trustees  of  each  district  and 
separate  neighborhood,  regarding  them  as  a  perpetual  corporation.  It 
is  in  substance  an  account  between  the  district  and  the  town,  which  is 
not  broken  or  affected  by  any  change  in  the  officers  of  either.  It  may 
be  in  the  following  form  : 

Trustees  of  District  No.  2,  with  the  Supervisor  of  town  of . 


Dr. 

1856. 

July  27th.  To  paid  Miss  Anna 
Davis,  teacher's  wages, 
on  order  of  J.  D.  and 
C.  S.,  trustees  (voucher 
No.  12), 

Sept.  3d.  Paid  Noah  Parsons 
on  teacher's  wages,  on 
order  of  J.  D.  and  L.  M. , 
trustees  (voucher  No. 
33), 

Sept.  25th.  Paid  L.  M.  and 
P.  S.,  trustees,  library 
money  (voucher  No.  46), 

Oct.  22d.  To  copy  Code  of 
Public  Instruction 


Cr. 

1856. 

June  7th.  By  cash  received 
from  late  town  super- 
intendent for  teachers' 


wages,   

Do.  for  library, 

1857. 

April  2d.  Cash  of  county 
treasurer   for   teachers' 

wages, 

Do.  for  library, 

May  12th.  Cash  of  county 
treasurer  on  supplemen- 
tal   apportionment    for 

teachers'  wages, 

Do.  for  library, 


$63 
4 


166 


80 
18 


60 
36 


10 
1G 


No.  52.  On  rendering  such  account,  if  any  balance  shall 
be  found  remaining  in  the  hands  of  such  supervisor,  the  same 
shall  be  immediately  paid  by  him  to  his  successor  in  office, 
who  shall  hold  it  subject  to  the  order  of  the  trustees  of  any 
school  districts,  parts  of  district,  or  to  the  trustee  of  any  sepa- 
rate neighborhood,  to  which  the  same  may  have  been  appor- 
tioned, and  which  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  it.  ( Sec.  23, 
chap.  179  of  1856.) 


OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS.  149 

The  orders  and  other  vouchers  of  the  account  of  the  supervisor  going 
out  of  office  belong  to  him  only  in  his  official  character,  and  should  be 
delivered  to  his  successor,  precisely  as  if  he  was  vacating  an  official 
place  of  business  in  which  such  vouchers  were  by  law  required  to  be  filed 
and  kept.  On  turning  them  over  to  his  successor,  the  latter  should 
give  to  his  predecessor  a  receipt  which  may  be  substantially  in  the 
following  form : 

Received   of  John   Doe,    late    supervisor   of  the   town    of  , 

dollars  and cents  for  balance  of  school  moneys  remaining 

in  his  hands. 

Also,  vouchers  from  No. to  No. ,  both  inclusive,  in  support 

of  his  charges  for  disbursements,  bearing  the  same  numbers  in  his  cash 

account,  and  amounting  in  the  aggregate  to  the  sum  of dollars 

and cents. 

Also,  one  (or  two  or  more,  as  the  case  may  be)  bound  account  book, 
and  one  copy  Hull's  Treatise  on  Town  Officers  (or  whatever  other  books, 
papers  or  other  property  are  in  his  custody  as  supervisor).     Dated 

R.  Roe,  Supervisor  of . 

The  account  book  should  contain  an  inventory  of  all  books  or  other 
property  which  may  from  time  to  time  come  into  the  custody  of  the 
supervisor  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties  as  a  school  officer. 

No.  53.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  supervisor,  by  his  name 
of  office,  to  sue  for  and  recover  all  penalties  and  forfeitures 
imposed  by  any  act  relating  to  schools  in  respect  to  which 
no  provision  is  made,  or  for  any  default  or  omission  by  any 
town  -superintendent,  or  any  other  town  officer  or  school 
district  officer  or  officers,  now  required  to  be  sued  for  by  the 
town  superintendent ;  and,  after  deducting  his  costs  and 
expenses,  shall  report  the  balance  in  his  hands  to  the  com- 
missioner, who  shall  apportion  the  same  to  the  district  or 
districts  to  which  the  same  may  belong.  ( Sec.  24,  chap.  179 
o/1856.) 

The  commissioner  to  whom  the  sums  collected  for  penalties  and  for- 
feitures are  to  be  reported,  is  the  school  commissioner  of  the  assembly 
district  or  section  of  a  county  in  which  the  supervisor's  town  is  situated. 
It  will  be  requisite  to  state  in  the  report  under  what  section  of  the  law 
and  against  what  school  officer  the  several  penalties  were  recovered,  to 
enable  the  commissioner  to  determine  whether  they  belong  to  any  and 
what  district,  or  are  to  be  apportioned  to  several  districts. 


150  CUSTODY  AND  DISBURSEMENT. 

No.  54.  All  the  powers  and  duties  formerly  possessed  and 
exercised  by  the  trustees  of  the  gospel  and  school  lots,  and  sub- 
sequently, by  section  one  of  chapter  one  hundred  and  eighty- 
six,  Laws  of  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty  six,  con- 
ferred upon  town  superintendents  of  common  schools,  are 
hereby  conferred  and  imposed  upon  the  supervisors  of  towns, 
and  shall  hereafter  be  exercised  and  performed  by.  them. 
(Sec.  27,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

In  accordance  with  the  above  sections,  whenever  the  words  "  town 
superintendents"  occur  in  the  following  extracts  from  the  statutes,  they 
have  been  changed  to  "  supervisors." 

Toivn  School  Funds. 

The  act  passed  in  1*789  for  the  sale  of  lands  belonging  to  the  people 
of  this  state  required  the  surveyor-general  to  reserve,  in  each  township, 
one  lot  for  the  support  of  the  gospel,  and  one  lot  for  the  use  of  schools 
in  such  township. 

The  following  is  a  list  of  the  principal  reservations  of  this  nature,  viz  : 

One  lot,  of  550  acres,  in  each  of  the  twenty-eight  townships  in  the 
military  tract. 

Forty  lots,  of  250  acres  each,  in  each  of  the  twenty  townships  west  of 
the  Unadilla  river,  being  ten  thousand  acres. 

One  lot,  of  640  acres,  in  each  of  the  townships  of  Fayette,  Clinton, 
Greene,  Warren,  Chenango,  Sidney  and  Hampden,  then  in  the  counties 
of  Broome  and  Chenango. 

Ten  lots,  of  640  acres  each,  in  the  townships  along  the  St.  Lawrence. 

In  the  township  of  Plattsburgh  400  acres  were  reserved  for  the  use 
of  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  and  460  acres  for  the  use  of  a  public  school 
or  schools  in  the  said  township. 

In  the  township  of  Benson  640  acres  were  reserved  for  gospel  and 
schools. 

By  an  act  passed  in  1*798,  in  relation  to  gospel  and  school  lots,  it  is 
provided  "  that  the  moneys  arising  from  the  leasing  of  the  said  lots  of 
land  as  aforesaid,  and  from  the  trespasses  aforesaid,  shall  be  applied  to 
the  use  of  schools  or  support  of  the  gospel  in  the  original  townships,  as 
surveyed,  in  which  such  lots  shall  be  respectively  situated,  and  for  no 
other  purpose  ;  which  said  application  shall  be  made  either  for  schools 
or  gospel,  or  both,  and  in  such  way  and  manner  as  the  freeholders  and 
inhabitants  of  the  towns,  in  which  the  same  lands  shall  lie,  shall  in  legal 
town  meeting  from  time  to  time  direct,  order  and  appoint." 


OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS.  151 

By  an  act  passed  in  1808,  the  act  of  1798  was  extended  to  all  the 
townships  where  lots  of  land  are  reserved  for  the  support  of  gospel  and 
schools,  and  the  following  provision  was  added : 

"§  1.  Beit  enacted,  c£c,  That  the  moneys  arising  from  the  annual 
rents  and  profits  of  the  gospel  lots  in  each  township  shall  be  equally 
divided,  by  the  supervisor  and  commissioners  appointed  in  each  town- 
ship, between  the  several  religious  societies  legally  organized  in  such 
township,  and  that  the  money  arising  from  the  annual  rents  and  profits 
of  the  several  school  lots  shall  be  distributed  among  the  schools  kept  in 
each  respective  township,  by  teachers  to  be  approved  of  by  the  super- 
visor and  commissioners  constituted  by  the  act  to  which  this  is  an 
amendment,  or  a  majority  of  them  in  said  township,  in  proportion  to 
the  aggregate  number  of  days  which  the  scholars  in  each  respective 
school  shall  have  respectively  attended  such  schools  in  the  year  imme- 
diately preceding  such  division." 

The  fourth  section  of  an  act  concerning  the  gospel  and  school  lots, 
passed  in  1813,  is  as  follows  : 

"  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  the  rents,  issues  and  profits  of  the 
aforesaid  lands,  and  the  annual  interest  of  the  moneys  arising  from  the 
6ale  thereof,  shall  be  applied  by  the  said  trustees  [supervisor]  for  the 
time  being  to  the  support  of  the  gospel  and  schools  in  their  several 
towns,  in  such  manner  as  the  freeholders  and  inhabitants  of  the  towns, 
respectively,  at  their  annual  town  meeting,  shall  order  and  direct,  or  as 
the  legislature  shall  prescribe  by  law."     [Session  Laws  of  1813,  p.  157.) 

In  1819,  an  act  was  passed  in  relation  to  the  gospel  and  school  lots, 
which  contains  the  following  section  : 

"  §  2.  And  be  it  further  enacted,  That  all  moneys  now  due  or  here- 
after to  become  due,  and  which  shall  have  come  into  the  hands  of  the 
aforesaid  commissioners  of  public  lots,  and  have  not  been  applied  and 
paid  over  to  religious  societies,  shall  be  apportioned  among  the  several 
school  districts  in  the  several  towns  of  the  aforementioned  counties 
[Onondaga,  Cayuga  and  Seneca],  anything  in  the  acts  heretofore  passed 
to  the  contrary  notwithstanding." 

By  §  1  of  chap.  186,  Laws  of  1846,  "the  office  of  trustees  of  the 
gospel  and  school  lots  in  the  several  towns  in  this  state  is  hereby  abo- 
lished ;  and  the  powers  and  duties  now  by  law  conferred  and  imposed 
upon  said  trustees  shall  hereafter  be  exercised  by  the  town  superinten- 
dent of  common  schools  [supervisor]." 

By  the  provisions  of  chap.  15,  title  4,  of  part  1  of  the  Revised 
Statutes,  the  trustees  of  the  several  gospel  and  school  lots  [supervisor] 
were  authorized  and  required  : 

"  1 .  To  take  and  hold  possession  of  the  gospel  and  school  lot  of  their  town. 

"  2.  To  lease  the  same  for  such  time,  not  exceeding  twenty-one  years, 
and  upon  such  conditions  as  they  shall  deem  expedient. 

"  3.  To  sell  the  same,  with  the  advice  and  consent  of  the  inhabitants 
of  the  town,  in  town  meeting  assembled,  for  such  prices  and  upon  such 
terms  of  credit  as  shall  appear  to  them  most  advantageous. 


152  CUSTODY  AND  DISBURSEMENT 

"  4.  To  invest  the  proceeds  of  such  sales  in  loans  secured  by  bond 
and  mortgage  upon  unincumbered  real  property  of  the  value  of  double 
the  amount  loaned. 

"  5.  To  purchase  property  so  mortgaged  upon  a  foreclosure,  and 
to  hold  and  convey  the  property  so  purchased,  whenever  it  shall  become 
necessary. 

"  6.  To  release  the  amount  of  such  loans  repaid  to  them  upon  the 
like  security. 

"  V.  To  apply  the  rents  and  profits  of  such  lots,  and  the  interest  of 
the  money  arising  from  the  sale  thereof,  to  the  support  of  the  gospel 
and  schools,  or  either,  as  may  be  provided  by  law,  in  such  manner  as 
shall  be  thus  provided. 

"  8.  To  render  a  just  and  true  account  of  the  proceeds  of  the  sales, 
and  the  interest  on  the  loans  thereof,  and  of  the  rents  and  profits  of 
such  gospel  and  school  lots,  and  of  the  expenditure  and  appropriation 
thereof,  on  the  last  Tuesday  next  preceding  the  annual  town  meeting 
in  each  year,  to  the  board  of  auditors  of  the  accounts  of  other  town 
officers. 

"  9.  To  deliver  over  to  their  successors  in  office  all  books,  papers  and 
securities  relating  to  the  same,  at  the  expiration  of  their  respective 
offices :  and 

"  10.  To  take  therefor  a  receipt,  which  shall  be  filed  in  the  clerk's 
office  of  the  town. 

"  §  4.  The  board  of  auditors  in  each  town  shall  annually  report  the 
state  of  the  accounts  of  the  trustees  of  the  gospel  and  school  lots 
[supervisor]  in  that  town  to  the  inhabitants  thereof,  at  their  annual 
town  meeting. 

"  §  5.  Whenever  a  town,  having  lands  assigned  to  it  for  the  support 
of  the  gospel  or  of  schools,  shall  be  divided  into  two  or  more  towns,  or 
shall  be  altered  in  its  limits  by  the  annexing  of  a  part  of  its  territory  to 
another  town  or  towns,  such  lands  shall  be  sold  by  the  trustees  [super- 
visor] of  the  town  in  which  such  lands  were  included  immediately 
before  such  division  or  alteration ;  and  the  proceeds  thereof  shall  be 
apportioned  between  the  towns  interested  therein,  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  other  public  moneys  of  towns  so  divided  or  altered  are  appor- 
tioned. 

"  §  6.  The  shares  of  such  moneys  to  which  the  towns  shall  be  respec- 
tively entitled  shall  be  paid  to  the  trustees  of  the  gospel  and  school 
lots  [supervisor]  of  the  respective  towns,  and  shall  thereafter  be  subject 
to  the  provisions  of  this  title. 

"  §  V.  If  in  either  of  such  towns  trustees  of  gospel  and  school  lots 
shall  not  have  been  chosen,  or  there  be  none  in  office,  the  share  of  such 
town  shall  be  paid  to  the  supervisor." 

No.  55.  All  the  powers  and  duties  imposed  upon  the  com- 
missioners of  common  schools,  by  the  act  passed  April  twenty- 
seventh,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  twenty-nine,  entitled 
"  An  act  relative  to  moneys  in  the  hands  of  overseers  of  the 


OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS.  153 

poor,"  passed  April  twenty-seventh,  one  thousand  eight  hun- 
dred and  twenty-nine,  are  hereby  imposed  upon  the  supervi- 
sors of  towns.  (Sec.  29,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

The  act  herein  referred  to  is  as  follows  ;  the  word  "supervisor"  being 
substituted  in  place  of  "  town  superintendent"  wherever  the  latter  is  used : 

An  Act  relative  to  moneys  in  the  hands  of  overseers  of  the  poor. 

Passed  April  27,  1829. 

"  §  1.  It  shall  be  lawful  for  the  inhabitants  of  any  town,  in  such 
counties  as  have  abolished  the  distinction  between  county  and  town 
paupers,  and  in  such  counties  as  may  hereafter  abolish  such  distinction, 
at  any  annual  or  special  town  meeting,  to  appropriate  all  or  any  part 
of  the  moneys  and  funds  remaining  in  the  hands  of  the  overseers  of  the 
poor  of  such  town,  after  such  abolition,  to  such  objects  and  for  such 
purposes  as  shall  be  determined  at  such  meeting. 

"  §  2.  If  any  such  meeting  shall  appropriate  any  such  money  or  funds 
for  the  benefit  of  common  schools  in  their  town,  the  money  so  appro- 
priated shall  be  denominated  '  the  common  school  fund  of  such  town,' 
and  shall  be  under  the  care  and  superintendence  of  the  [supervisor]  of 
said  town. 

"  §  3.  If  any  such  meeting  shall  appropriate  such  money  or  funds  for 
the  benefit  of  common  schools,  after  such  appropriation  shall  have  been 
made,  and  after  the  [supervisor]  shall  have  taken  the  oath  of  office,  the 
overseers  of  the  poor  of  such  towns  shall  then  pay  over  and  deliver  to 
the  said  [supervisor]  such  moneys,  bonds,  mortgages,  notes  and  other 
securities  remaining  in  their  hands,  as  such  overseers  of  the  poor,  as  will 
comport  with  the  appropriation  made  for  the  benefit  of  common  schools 
of  their  town. 

"§  4.  The  said  [supervisor]  may  sue  for  and  collect,  in  their  name 
of  office,-  the  money  due  or  to  become  due  on  such  bonds,  mortgages, 
notes  or  other  securities,  and  also  all  other  securities  by  them  taken 
under  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

"  §  5.  The  moneys,  bonds,  mortgages,  notes  and  other  securities 
aforesaid  shall  continue  and  be  a  permanent  fund,  to  be  denominated 
the  common  school  fund  of  the  town  appropriating  the  same,  the  annual 
interest  of  which  shall  be  applied  to  the  support  of  common  schools  in 
such  towns,  unless  the  inhabitants  of  such  town,  in  annual  town  meeting, 
shall  make  a  different  disposition  of  the  whole  of  the  principal  and 
interest,  or  any  part  thereof,  for  the  benefit  of  the  common  schools  of 
such  town. 

"  §  6.  The  said  [supervisor],  whenever  the  whole  or  any  part  of  the 
principal  of  said  fund  shall  come  to  their  hands,  shall  loan  the  same  on 
bond,  secured  by  a  mortgage  on  real  estate  of  double  the  value  of  the 
moneys  so  loaned,  exclusive  of  buildings  or  artificial  erections  thereon. 

"  §  7.  The  said  [supervisor]  may  purchase  in  the  estate  on  which  the 
fund  shall  have  been  secured,  upon  the  foreclosure  of  any  mortgage,  and 
mav  hold  and  convey  the  same  for  the  use  of  said  fund. 

rCoDE.]  20 


154  OF  THE  ELECTION  OF 

"8  8.  The  said  [supervisor]  shall  retain  the  interest  of  said  common 
school  fund,  which  shall  be  distributed  and  applied  to  the  support  of 
common  schools  of  such  town,  in  like  manner  as  the  public  money  for 
the  support  of  common  schools  shall  be  distributed  by  law. 

"§  9.  The  said  [supervisor]  shall  account  annually,  in  such  manner 
and  at  such  times  as  town  officers  are  required  by  law  to  account,  and 
shall  deliver  to  their  successors  in  office,  all  moneys,  books,  securities 
and  papers  whatsoever  relating  to  said  fund,  and  shall  take  a  receipt 
therefor,  and  file  the  same  with  the  town  clerk." 

No.  56.  All  the  powers  and  duties  imposed  upon  town 
superintendents,  by  sections  seventy-two,  seventy-three, 
seventy-seven,  eighty  and  one  hundred  and  thirteen  of  chapter 
four  hundred  and  eighty,  Laws  of  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  forty-seven,  are  hereby  imposed  upon  the  supervisors  of 
the  towns.  (Sec.  26,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

Each  of  the  sections  above  referred  to  will  be  found  in  its  proper 
connections  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  56. 

OF  THE  ELECTION  OF  SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS. 

No.  57.  The  boards  of  supervisors  of  the  several  counties 
in  this  state,  composing  each  one  assembly  district,  and  also 
the  boards  of  supervisors  of  each  of  the  counties  of  Fulton 
and  Hamilton,  shall  assemble  at  their  usual  place  of  meeting 
on  the  3d  day  of  June  next,  at  noon,  and  elect  for  their 
county  an  officer  to  be  called  school  commissioner.  Such 
officer  shall  be  elected  by  ballot,  and  shall  hold  his  office  from 
the  day  of  his  election  until  the  1st  day  of  January,  1858. 
( Sec.  1,  chap.  179,  passed  April  12,  1856. ) 

No.  58.  The  boards  of  supervisors  of  the  several  counties 
in  this  state  having  more  than  one  assembly  district,  except 
the  counties  of  New-York  and  Kings,  shall  meet  on  the  3d 
day  of  June  next,  at  noon,  and  elect  by  ballot  an  officer  to  be 
called  school  commissioner,  for  each  assembly  district  in  their 
respective  counties,  who  shall  hold  his  office  until  the  1st  day 
of  January,  1858.  (-Sec.  2,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

No.  59.  The  supervisors  of  the  towns  of  Flatbush,  Flatland, 
Gravesend,  Newlots  and  New  Utrecht,  in  the  county  of 
Kings,  shall,  on  the  3d  day  of  June  next,  meet  at  the  usual 
place  of  meeting  of  the  board  of  supervisors  of  said  county, 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  155 

and  elect  by  ballot  a  school  commissioner  for  that  portion  of 
said  county  not  included  within  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  who 
shall  hold  his  office  from  the  day  of  election  until  the  1st  day 
of  January,  1858,  and  until  a  successor  shall  have  been 
elected  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  said  towns  in  the  manner 
hereinafter  provided.  (Sec.  3,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

No.  60.  In  the  several  counties  composing  each  but  one 
assembly  district,  the  respective  boards  of  supervisors  shall 
have  power  and  are  hereby  authorized,  in  their  discretion,  to 
choose  two  school  commissioners  whenever  the  number  of 
school  districts  in  the  county  shall  exceed  140,  counting  two 
parts  of  districts,  joint  with  other  counties,  one  district.  In 
case  two  commissioners  shall  be  chosen  as  aforesaid,  then  the 
board  of  supervisors  shall  immediately  proceed  to  divide  the 
county  into  two  districts  or  sections,  having  reference  in  such 
division,  as  nearly  as  may  be,  to  equalize  the  territory  and 
number  of  schools  and  pupils  under  the  supervision  of  each 
commissioner,  and  also  having  reference  to  the  density  of 
population  and  the  facilities  for  traveling.  They  shall  make  a 
description  of  the  divisions  established  by  them,  and  assign 
the  charge  of  one  of  them  to  each  of  the  commissioners  then 
chosen.  But  no  town  shall  be  divided  in  the  formation  of 
any  such  district.  Such  description  shall  be  filed  in  the  office 
of  the  county  clerk,  and  a  copy  thereof  sent  by  him  to  the 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction.  (Sec.  4,  chap.  179 
o/1856.) 

No.  61.  In  case  any  two  persons  shall  have  an  equal  num- 
ber of  votes  for  the  office  of  commissioner,  at  the  election 
hereinbefore  provided  for,  the  clerk  of  the  board  may  give  a 
casting  vote,  but,  except  for  that  purpose,  shall  have  no  vote 
in  the  proceedings.  (Sec.  5,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

No.  62.  A  certificate  of  the  election  of  every  commissioner 
shall  forthwith  be  made  by  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  super- 
visors and  filed  in  the  office  of  the  county  clerk,  and  a  dupli- 
cate thereof  be  sent  by  mail  to  the  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction ;  and  the  county  clerk,  upon  the  filing  of  such 
certificate,  shall  forthwith  give  notice,  in  writing,  to  the 
school  commissioners  of  their  election,  who  shall,  within  ten 
days  after  such  notice,  take  and  subscribe  the  constitutional 
oath  of  office,  and  shall  give  notice  of  their  acceptance  to  the 
Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  and  enter  upon  their 


156  OF  THE  ELECTION  OF 

duties  immediately.  They  shall  hold  their  office  until  the  1st 
day  of  January,  1858,  and  until  their  successors  shall  have 
taken  and  filed  with  the  county  clerk  the  like  oath  of  office. 
(Sec.  6,  chap.  179  of]  856.) 

No.  63.  At  the  annual  general  election  held  in  the  year 
1857,  and  every  three  years  thereafter,  there  shall  be  elected 
on  a  separate  ballot,  to  be  endorsed  "  School  Commissioner," 
in  the  several  assembly  districts,  and  in  the  sections  of  single 
assembly  districts  formed  and  designated  as  hereinbefore  pro- 
vided, and  in  the  towns  of  Kings  county  not  included  in  the 
city  of  Brooklyn,  a  school  commissioner  for  such  district  or 
section.  All  the  provisions  of  law  relating  to  the  mode  of 
voting  and  of  canvassing  the  votes  for  county  officers  shall 
apply  to  and  govern  the  election  of  such  commissioners. 
The  persons  so  elected  shall  enter  into  office  on  the  1st  day 
of  January,  1858,  and  shall  hold  office  for  three  years,  and 
until  their  successors  shall  have  qualified  according  to  law. 
Each  of  such  commissioners,  in  counties  where  more  than  one 
is  elected,  shall  take  charge  of  that  one  of  the  assembly  dis- 
tricts, or  that  one  of  the  sections  into  which  any  county 
having  but  one  assembly  district  may  be  divided,  for  which 
he  shall  have  been  elected ;  but  may,  upon  the  written 
request  of  the  commissioner  in  charge  of  any  other  section 
of  the  same  county,  perform  any  duties  therein  which  he  might 
discharge  in  the  section  of  his  own  residence.  (Sec.  7,  chap. 
179  o/1856.) 

The  jurisdiction  of  the  school  commissioner  is  strictly  limited  to  the 
district  for  which  he  is  elected.  But  the  commissioner  may  at  times  be 
necessarily  absent,  or  he  may  from  sickness  or  injury  be  unable  to  per- 
form his  duties,  or  he  may  be  incapacitated  by  some  legal  disability. 
In  such  cases  his  written  request  will  call  to  his  aid  another  commis- 
sioner of  the  same  county. 

But  whenever  a  commissioner  is  so  called  upon  to  exercise  any 
powers  or  perform  any  duties  out  of  his  own  jurisdiction,  and  the  acts 
are  of  an  important  and  permanent  character,  such  as  ought  to  be 
recorded  or  be  put  in  writing,  as  for  instance  certificates,  or  alterations 
of  districts,  he  should  in  every  written  instrument  recite  the  written 
request,  under  which  he  is  acting,  substantially  or  in  full.  It  would  also 
be  advisable  to  file  such  written  request  in  the  office  of  the  county  clerk, 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  157 

for  safe  keeping  and  future  reference,  in  case  any  question  should  arise 
as  to  the  validity  of  his  acts. 

No.  64.  Every  commissioner  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall 
be  his  duty : 

1.  To  visit  and  examine  all  the  schools  and  school  districts 
committed  to  his  charge,  as  often  in  each  year  as  shall  be 
practicable ;  to  inquire  into  all  matters  relating  to  the  man- 
agement, the  course  and  mode  of  instruction,  the  books, 
studies  and  discipline  of  such  schools,  the  condition  of  the 
school-houses,  out-buildings  and  appendages,  and  of  the  dis- 
tricts generally ;  to  advise  and  counsel  with  the  trustees  and 
other  officers  of  school  districts  in  relation  to  their  duties, 
and  particularly  in  relation  to  the  construction,  ventilation 
and  warming  of  school-houses,  and  the  improving  and  adorn- 
ing of  the  school  grounds  connected  therewith,  and  to  recom- 
mend to  such  trustees  and  to  the  teachers  employed  by  them 
the  proper  studies,  discipline  and  management  of  the  schools, 
the  course  of  instruction  to  be  pursued,  and  to  examine  into 
the  condition  of  the  district  libraries.  No  commissioner  shall 
act  as  agent  for  any  author,  publisher  or  bookseller,  or  shall 
directly  or  indirectly  receive  any  gift,  emolument  or  reward 
for  his  influence  in  recommending  the  use  of  any  book  or 
school  apparatus  or  furniture  of  any  kind  whatever.  Any 
act  herein  prohibited  shall  be  deemed  a  violation  of  his  official 
oath,  and  any  offer  or  solicitation  to  such  an  act  shall  be  con- 
sidered an  attempt  to  bribe  and  corrupt  a  public  officer ; 

2.  To  examine  persons  offering  themselves  as  candidates  for 
teachers  of  public  schools,  in  order  to  determine  and  to  decide 
upon  their  capacity,  and  to  grant  them  certificates  of  qualifi- 
cation, in  such  forms  as  shall  be  prescribed  by  the  Superinten- 
dent of  Public  Instruction,  which  certificates,  according  to 
the  terms  thereof,  shall  be  evidence  of  the  qualifications  of 
such  teachers  in  the  district  of  the  county  to  which  such  com- 
missioner shall  be  elected,  or  to  which  he  shall  be  assigned  in 
accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this  act ; 

3.  To  annul  any  certificate  granted  to  any  teacher  by  him 
or  by  his  predecessor,  or  by  any  town  or  county  superinten- 
dent, whenever  such  teacher  shall  be  found  deficient,  and  to 
examine,  upon  reasonable  notice  and  opportunity  of  defense 
to  the  teacher,  into  all  charges  affecting  the  moral  character 
of  the  teacher,  which  may  be  presented  as  a  cause  for  annul- 
ling a  certificate,  by  whomsoever  such  certificate  may  have 


158  DUTIES  OF 

been  granted,  and  he  shall  report  every  instance  of  such 
examination,  the  evidence  which  may  be  presented  in  the  case, 
to  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  immediately  after 
the  conclusion  of  such  examination  ; 

4.  To  organize  and  conduct  at  least  once  in  each  year,  in 
his  own  district  or  in  concert  with  the  commissioner  or  com 
missioners  of  one  or  more  adjoining  districts  in  the  same 
county,  a  teachers'  institute,  and  to  induce,  if  possible,  all  the 
common  school  teachers  in  his  district  to  be  present  and  take 
part  in  the  exercises  of  such  institute;  and  to  perform  the 
duties  imposed  by  chapter  three  hundred  and  sixty-one,  Laws 
of  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty-seven,  upon  town 
superintendents,  and  to  give  the  notice  therein  required  to  be 
given  by  the  county  clerk ; 

5.  And  generally  by  all  means  in  his  power  to  promote 
sound  education,  elevate  the  character  and  qualifications  of 
teachers,  improve  the  means  of  instruction,  and  advance  the 
interests  of  the  schools  committed  to  his  charge.  ( Sec.  8, 
chap.  179  o/1856.) 

For  greater  convenience  and  a  clearer  understanding  of  the  subject, 
the  several  subdivisions  of  this  section  will  be  commented  upon  sepa- 
rately : 

1.  To  visit  and  examine  all  the  schools  and  school  districts  committed 
to  his  charge,  as  often  in  each  year  as  shall  be  practicable ;  to  inquire 
into  all  matters  relating  to  the  management,  the  course  and  mode  of 
instruction,  the  books,  studies  and  discipline  of  such  schools,  the  condi- 
tion of  the  school-houses,  out-buildings  and  appendages,  and  of  the  dis- 
tricts generally  ;  to  advise  and  counsel  with  the  trustees  and  other 
officers  of  school  districts  in  relation  to  their  duties,  and  particularly  in 
relation  to  the  construction,  ventilation  and  warming  of  school-houses, 
and  the  improving  and  adorning  of  the  school  grounds  connected  there- 
with, and  to  recommend  to  such  trustees  and  to  the  teachers  employed 
by  them  the  proper  studies,  discipline  and  management  of  the  schools, 
the  course  of  instruction  to  be  pursued,  and  to  examine  into  the  condi- 
tion of  the  district  libraries.  No  commissioner  shall  act  as  agent  for 
any  author,  publisher  or  bookseller,  or  shall  directly  or  indirectly  receive 
any  gift,  emolument  or  reward  for  his  influence  in  recommending  the 
use  of  any  book  or  school  apparatus  or  furniture  of  any  kind  whatever. 
Any  act  herein  prohibited  shall  be  deemed  a  violation  of  his  official 
oath,  and  any  offer  or  solicitation  to  such  an  act  shall  be  considered  an 
attempt  to  bribe  and  corrupt  a  public  officer. 

The  duties  comprised  in  this  subdivision  may  be  stated  under  two 
heads  : 

I.  Visiting  and  inspecting  the  schools. 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  159 

II.  Advising  and  counseling  with  the  trustees  and  other  school 
officers  and  with  teachers. 

I.  The  number  of  commissioners  in  the  state,  excluding  the  cities,  is 
one  hundred  and  thirteen.  Each  commissioner  is  required  to  visit  all 
the  schools  in  his  district  each  year,  as  often  as  is  practicable.  The 
number  of  districts  to  be  visited  by  any  commissioner  will,  in  a  few 
cases,  reach  one  hundred  and  fifty  ;  perhaps,  in  most  cases,  will  be  less, 
and  in  some  a  little  more,  than  one  hundred.  Allowing  half  a  day  to  a 
visit,  it  will  be  found  practicable  to  visit  each  school  and  school  district 
in  the  state  not  less  than  three  times  a  year.  It  would  be  found  useful, 
where  practicable,  to  assemble  together  two  or  three  schools,  and  devote 
a  whole  day  to  their  examination.  A  comparison  of  schools  would 
excite  emulation,  and  improve  both  scholars  and  teachers. 

Having  acquired  a  complete  and  familiar  knowledge  of  the  geography 
of  his  district,  the  commissioner  should  arrange  a  plan  for  visitation,  as 
a  judge  does  the  terms  of  his  courts,  for  a  year  or  two  years.  It  would 
be  well  to  print  his  programme,  and  distribute  it  in  every  town  and 
district,  so  that  trustees  and  pupils  and  people  may  be  prepared  for  his 
visits.  The  publishers  of  newspapers  would  be  found  ready  to  insert  the 
programme  of  visitation  in  their  papers,  as  an  item  of  news  highly 
important  to  their  subscribers  and  readers. 

In  addition  to  this  general  notice,  the  commissioner  should  give  a 
particular  notice  to  the  trustees  and  teacher  of  every  school,  of  the  day 
when  he  will  be  present  and  examine  the  school.  He  should  invite  the 
trustees  to  inform  the  parents  of  pupils  of  his  visit,  and  urge  them 
to  attend. 

Examination  of  the  School :  Preparatory  to  this,  the  commissioner 
should  ascertain  from  the  teacher  the  number  of  classes,  the  studies 
pursued  by  each,  the  routine  of  the  school,  the  successive  exercises  of 
each  class  during  each  hour  of  the  day,  the  play  spells  allowed,  &c, 
and  thus  obtain  a  general  knowledge  of  the  school,  which  will  be  found 
greatly  to  facilitate  his  subsequent  duties.  Every  commissioner  is 
enjoined  to  call  for  and  examine  the  list  of  scholars  in  the  book  which 
the  statute  requires  the  teacher  to  keep,  in  order  that  he  may  see 
whether  the  names  are  correctly  and  neatly  entered.  He  will  also 
examine  the  day  roll  and  the  weekly  roll,  which  by  the  preceding  regu- 
lations teachers  are  directed  to  preserve,  and  will  ascertain,  by  the  pro- 
per inquiries,  whether  they  are  exact  in  entering  all  who  are  present. 


160  DUTIES  OF 

The  commissioner  will  then  hear  each  class  recite  the  ordinary  les- 
son of  the  day.  It  will  then  be  examined  on  the  subjects  of  study. 
Generally  it  will  be  better  to  allow  the  teacher  to  conduct  the  exercises 
and  examinations,  as  the  pupils  will  be  less  likely  to  be  intimidated, 
and  an  opportunity  will  be  given  of  judging  of  the  qualifications  of  the 
instructors. 

To  enable  him  to  compare  the  school  with  itself  at  another  time,  and 
with  other  schools,  and  to  comply  with  the  regulations  hereinafter 
contained  respecting  the  annual  reports,  the  commissioner  should 
keep  notes  of  his  observations,  and  of  the  information  he  obtains  on  all 
the  subjects  on  which  he  is  required  to  report ;  and  he  should  particu- 
larly note  any  peculiarities  which  seem  to  require  notice  in  the  mode 
of  instruction,  in  the  government  and  discipline  of  the  school,  and  the 
appearance  of  the  pupils  in  respect  to  their  cleanliness  of  person  and 
neatness  of  apparel. 

II.  Advising  and  consulting  with  other  officers  of  the  district. 

This  duty  is  especially  enjoined  by  the  act  upon  commissioners.  The 
law,  in  the  broadest  terms,  requires  them  to  advise  and  counsel  the  trus- 
tees and  other  school  officers  in  relation  to  all  their  duties. 

The  performance  of  this  duty  will  demand  great  care  and  circum- 
spection. It  should  be  constantly  borne  in  mind  that  the  office  of  an 
adviser  and  counselor  is  to  ascertain  facts  and  learn  the  true  condition 
of  things,  and  then  to  suggest  and  propose  improvements  and  remedies. 
Interrogatories,  judiciously  aimed  at  abuses,  errors,  mistakes  and  omissions, 
will  call  attention  to  them  as  clearly  as  if  they  were  condemned  outright, 
<jnd  at  the  same  time  give  no  offence. 

The  advice  and  counsel  needed  will  generally  come  under  the  heads 
of  proper  studies ;  the  discipline  and  conduct  of  the  school ;  the  course 
of  instruction ;  the  elementary  books ;  the  erection  of  school-houses ; 
and  the  ability  of  the  district  to  maintain  a  school. 

1.  The  proper  studies:  The  proper  studies  vary  with  the  age  and 
advancement  of  the  scholars.  The  great  object  of  the  common  schools 
is,  unquestionably,  to  instruct  the  youth  of  the  state  in  the  ordinary 
branches  of  a  good  English  education.  To  spell,  to  read  and  write, 
should  be  the  first  care.  As  soon  as  a  child  can  write,  spelling  and 
writing  should  be  one  exercise.  The  meaning  of  the  words  spelled 
should  also  be  explained  to  the  scholar,  as  a  great  assistance  to  the 
memory.  Correct  spelling  and  a  clear  comprehension  of  the  words  are 
essential  to  good  reading.  A  distinct  articulation  of  every  syllable  is 
the  most  important  requisition.     A  correct,  and  not  too  forcible  accent, 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  161 

an  utterance  neither  too  rapid  nor  too  slow,  and  a  clear  understanding 
of  the  subject,  are  also  important  requirements. 

The  commissioner  will  carefully  note  the  capabilities  of  the  scholars, 
and  their  grade  of  improvement,  and  advise  that  no  studies  be  imposed 
or  permitted  until  the  pupil  can  enter  upon  them  understandingly.  The 
hill  of  science  must  be  climbed  with  patient  assiduity,  step  by  step. 
Some  may  be  able  to  step  faster  than  others ;  but  whoever  attempts  to 
overleap  any  of  its  acclivities,  will  be  sure  to  fall  back,  and  be  compelled 
to  start  anew. 

2.  The  discipline  and  conduct  of  the  school :  The  commissioners  can- 
not too  strongly  inculcate  the  necessity  of  a  punctual  and  continuous 
attendance  during  school  hours  for  the  whole  term.  Teachers  should 
be  advised  to  insist  upon  this.  The  first  hour  of  a  session,  in  the 
morning  or  afternoon,  should  not  be  interrupted  by  the  noisy  dropping 
in,  everv  few  minutes,  of  truant  and  tardy  children.  The  interruption 
is  not  the  worst  of  the  evil.  The  want  of  punctuality  involves  the  loss 
of  time  that  should  be  applied  to  study ;  and  the  tardy  and  often  absent 
soon  lag  behind  their  associates,  become  disheartened,  relax  their  efforts, 
and  finally,  in  many  cases,  acquire  a  habit  ot  irregularity,  insubordi- 
nation and  negligence,  which  marks  their  character  through  life. 

Order  and  system  should  prevail  in  the  whole  conduct  of  the  school. 
The  routine  of  recitations  and  other  exercises  should  be  regular  and 
seldom  changed.  The  pupils  should  give  a  ready  obedience  to  the 
commands  of  the  teacher,  and  a  strict  compliance  with  rules  and  regu- 
lations should  be  exacted.  Pupils  should  be  instructed  that  these  com- 
mands, rules  and  regulations  are  not  imposed  upon  them  as  a  restraint 
or  humiliation,  but  for  their  good ;  as  the  best  means  of  expediting  the 
sole  business  of  the  school,  their  acquisition  of  knowledge. 

The  commissioners  should  also  observe  whether  the  teachers  possess 
the  respect  of  their  scholars,  and  whether  their  deportment  in  and  out 
of  the  school  is  such  as  to  preserve  it.  They  should  particularly  note 
how  the  authority  of  the  teacher  is  maintained ;  whether  it  is  the  result 
of  a  mild  and  conciliating,  but  firm  and  steady  government,  or  whether 
it  is  an  unwilling  submission  to  the  arbitrary  rule  of  a  high  temper  and 
the  fear  of  the  rod. 

3.  The  course  of  instruction :  The  order  of  studies  which  long  expe- 
rience has  decided  to  be  best,  and  which  is  generally  followed,  is,  the 
alphabet,  spelling,  reading,  arithmetic,  geography,  history  and  grammar. 
To  learn  the  names  of  things  is  among  the  earliest  efforts  of  the  infan  t 

["Code.]  21 


162  DUTIES  OF 

mind.  It  is  the  work  of  several  years  to  master  the  simplest  combi- 
nations of  language.  In  teaching  the  elements  of  knowledge,  therefore, 
great  discretion  and  discrimination  are  necessary  in  graduating  instruc- 
tion to  the  capacity  of  pupils.  Primary  books  should  contain  only 
familiar  household  words  and  the  commonest  forms  of  speech.  When 
these  have  been  mastered,  others  of  a  higher  grade  should  be  substi- 
tuted ;  and  the  pupil  should  be  all  the  time,  insensibly  but  constantly, 
climbing  an  ascending  grade. 

The  four  simple  rules  of  arithmetic  are  easily  taught,  not  by  arbitrary 
rules  and  a  few  examples,  but  by  continual  practice  and  repetition,  with 
blocks  or  balls,  by  which  the  numbers  are  represented  to  the  eye. 
The  little  boy  who  sells  newspapers,  or  peddles  peanuts  and  apples, 
will  learn  in  a  few  weeks  all  the  combinations  of  simple  numbers,  less 
than  one  hundred,  without  having  ever  heard  of  Colburn  or  Emerson. 
Make  a  purchase  of  him,  and  hand  him  a  quarter  of  a  dollar,  and  he 
will  make  his  computation  and  give  you  the  change  as  promptly  as  the 
readiest  bank  teller. 

Geography,  by  means  of  maps,  charts  and  globes,  may  be  taught  at  a 
very  early  age.  History  requires  a  more  advanced  age.  The  study  of 
history  and  geography  may  be  combined.  In  the  course  of  the  reading 
lessons,  and  during  the  lesson  in  history,  whenever  a  place  is  named  the 
pupil  should  be  required  to  point  it  out  on  the  map.  A  daily  newspaper 
may  be  of  essential  service  in  teaching  geography  and  current  history 
The  use  of  a  map,  with  a  daily  paper,  will  very  soon  make  the  pupils 
acquainted  with  all  the  principal  commercial  ports  and  political  divisions 
of  every  part  of  the  world.  Geography  and  history,  thus  learned,  would 
be  indelibly  impressed  upon  the  memory.  Biography,  however,  has  a 
charm  for  the  very  young,  and  many  brief  narratives  might  be  made  a 
part  of  the  school  exercises.  Grammar,  treating  of  the  structure  and 
composition  of  language,  is  a  difficult  study,  and  should  not  be  under- 
taken till  the  mind  of  the  pupil  has  attained  a  maturity  and. strength 
capable  of  comparing,  analyzing  and  combining  phrases  and  sentences. 
To  read,  to  speak  and  to  write,  correctly  and  elegantly,  may  all  be 
learned  without  consulting  a  grammar.  But  a  knowledge  of  English 
grammar  is  a  very  important  part  of  a  good  common  education,  and  its 
study  a  very  useful  exercise  of  the  intellectual  powers. 

4.  Books  of  elementary  instruction  :  Within  the  last  few  years  a  great 
improvement  has  been  made  in  elementary  books.  A  great  many  series 
of  books,  elucidating  and  illustrating  every  branch  of  education  in  our 
common  schools,  have  been  published.     None  of  them  are  so  defective 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  163 

as  to  require  exclusion  from  the  schools,  and  none  of  them  are  compara. 
tively  so  superior  to  others  as  to  merit  particular  recommendation.  Trus- 
tees should  be  advised  not  to  permit  every  new  teacher  to  introduce  a  new 
set  of  books.  A  teacher  is  very  poorly  qualified  who  cannot  use  one 
set  of  text  books  as  well  as  another.  The  trustees  should  exercise  their 
authority,  in  relation  to  text  books,  to  prevent  any  unnecessary  change, 
and  to  preserve  an  uniformity.  Classes  of  the  same  grade  should  have 
the  same  books. 

Whenever  the  commissioner  finds  in  any  school  a  number  of  pupils 
of  the  same  standing  using  different  books,  and  classed  separately,  he 
should  point  out  the  evil,  by  showing  how,  if  all  had  the  same  books, 
one  class  and  one  recitation  would  suffice  for  all,  and  the  teacher's  cor- 
rections and  observations,  repeated  to  several  classes,  might  be  limited 
to  one,  and  much  valuable  time  of  pupils  and  teacher  be  saved. 

Where  the  evil  of  a  variety  of  text  books  prevails,  it  might  not  be 
advisable  to  compel  uniformity  by  an  immediate  change  of  books. 
The  trustees  could  however  decide  upon  the  text  books  to  be  used,  and 
require  every  scholar  who  should  afterwards  have  occasion  to  purchase  a 
new  book  to  conform  to  their  decision. 

A  serious  charge  against  county  superintendents  was,  that  they  acted 
as  book  agents ;  how  many,  if  any,  were  liable  to  such  a  charge  cannot 
be  determined.  The  present  law  relieves  them  not  only  from  numerous 
importunities,  but  from  the  imputation  of  recommending  text  books  on 
account  of  self-interest.  It  is  very  desirable  that  the  books  used  in  the 
same  school  should  be  uniform ;  but  it  is  not  desirable,  among  the  first 
and  prominent  acts  of  the  commissioners,  to  make  a  general  change 
of  text  books.  The  reforms  in  the  schools  depend  more  upon  the  teacher 
than  upon  the  influence  of  any  series  of  books. 

In  sties  and  large  villages,  the  adoption  of  uniform  text  books  is  a 
pecuniary  advantage  to  the  people,  particularly  to  the  transient  popula- 
tion that  frequently  move  from  one  district  to  another,  and  are  generally 
least  able  to  purchase  new  books.  But  the  positive  necessity  of 
uniformity  is  not  so  apparent  in  adjacent  rural  districts.  The  inhabi- 
tants there  do  not  often  change  their  residence.  It  is  not  best  to  be 
indifferent  as  to  the  merit  of  text  books,  but  to  exercise  prudence  in 
recommending  them.  It  is  desirable  that  the  people  should  understand 
that  while  the  interests  of  their  children  command  the  first  attention, 
the  subject  of  expenses  has  also  a  fair  consideration.  Their  confidence 
and  cooperation  will  thus  be  secured. 


164  DUTIES  OF 

5.  School-houses  and  grounds :  It  is  highly  important  that  an  earnest 
appeal  be  made  to  the  trustees  and  inhabitants  of  the  several  school 
districts  to  give  attention  to  the  condition  and  improvement  of  school- 
houses  and  grounds.  It  is  not  possible  to  have  schools  high-toned  and 
in  healthy  spirit,  "where  inattention  to  comfort  and  beauty  exists.  If  any 
element  of  character  unfavorable  to  order  and  progress  is  called  into 
morbid  activity,  it  may  often  be  traced  to  this  source.    . 

Health  of  body  and  vigor  of  mind  should  be  carefully  regarded. 
There  should  never  be  too  long  confinement  in  school  rooms.  Pure 
air  is  absolutely  indispensable.  It  has  been  suggested,  by  distinguished 
writers  on  education,  that  six  hours  of  daily  confinement  will  impair  the 
health  of  the  great  majority  of  pupils ;  that  with  the  very  best  ventila- 
tion, no  school  room  containing  a  score  or  more  of  children  can  be  as 
healthy  as  the  open  air ;  hence,  that  no  pupil  should  be  kept  in  school 
for  a  longer  time  than  is  necessary  to  fix  his  attention  upon  his  lessons. 
Growth  and  development  of  body  are  indispensable  to  the  future  well- 
being  of  the  child  and  to  realize  the  ideal  of  a  well  constituted  man  or 
woman.  To  this  end  the  enjoyment  of  pure,  fresh  air,  unconstrained 
attitudes  of  body,  ample  exercise  and  exhilarating  play,  are  absolutely 
necessary  ;  and  the  school-house,  its  location  and  grounds,  should  supply 
these  wants.  The  mind  of  every  child  craves,  receives  and  assimilates 
knowledge.  We  should  so  adapt  our  educational  facilities  that  the 
desire  for  intellectual  acquirement  shall  remain  through  life  unimpaired. 
But  very  many  children  are  so  stupefied  by  the  noxious  air  which  they 
are  compelled  to  breathe  six  hours  every  day,  their  vital  appparatus  so 
wearied,  that  they  acquire  an  abhorrence  of  school  and  a  disgust  for 
study  which  are  never  eradicated.  It  is  in  the  nature  of  things  that  any 
exertion,  connected  with  physical  suffering  or  oppressive  sense  of  con- 
straint, induces  repugnance.  Hence,  in  spite  of  the  efforts  employed  to 
impress  such  children  with  an  earnest  conviction  of  the  importance  of  a 
good  education,  they  regard  the  school  room  as  a  prison,  the  vacations 
as  seasons  of  delight,  and  adult  age  as  the  era  of  emancipation  from  an 
arduous  bondage. 

It  is  the  vocation  of  the  commissioners  to  discover  and  suggest  a 
correction  for  these  evils.  When  they  visit  school-houses,  they  should 
notice  whether  they  are  properly  located.  Many  are  situated  on  the 
line  of  the  highway.  They  should  be  removed  from  it  sufficiently  far 
to  escape  the  noise,  dust  and  other  inconveniences.  If  they  are  old,  and 
a  few  boards  and  shingles  and  a  little  paint  will  improve  their  external 
appearance,  and  make  them  internally  more  safe  and  comfortable,  surely 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  165 

they  should  be  applied.  If  the  doors  are  broken  or  the  seats  and  desks 
marred,  they  should  be  repaired  and  adapted  to  the  physical  comfort 
of  the  pupils ;  if  the  grounds  need  grading,  it  should  be  done ;  if  pools 
of  stagnant  water  are  near,  they  should  be  drained  and  filled;  if  the 
proper  fencing  is  required,  let  the  subject  receive  prompt  attention. 
Trees  should  be  planted,  shrubs  and  flowers  should  be  set.  Let  free 
application  be  made  of  broom,  brush  and  lime,  to  renovate  the  internal 
economy  of  the  school  room.  Willing  hands  enough  can  be  found  in 
every  school  district  to  make  all  the  improvements  suggested,  provided 
attention  is  directed  to  their  importance.  Certainly  it  is  the  school- 
house,  if  any  building,  which  ought  to  be  constructed  and  preserved 
with  care  and  surrounded  with  pleasant  scenery.  Few  parents  would 
reside  in  a  dwelling  constructed  with  as  little  regard  to  beauty  and 
comfort  as  are  many  of  our  school-houses.  They  should  care  as  well  for 
the  place  where  their  children  congregate  for  instruction.  They  should 
be  impressed  with  the  conviction,  that  there  the  associations  of  nature 
and  art  should  be  attractive,  to  secure  on  the  part  of  scholars  a  love  for 
their  school ;  that  associations  with  order  and  beauty  give  birth,  in  the 
minds  of  the  young,  to  pure  and  holy  emotions,  whose  happy  influence 
will  establish  them  in  purity  of  desire  and  thought. 

The  attention  of  trustees  should  be  called  to  this  subject;  and,  if 
possible,  they  should  be  induced  to  appoint  a  suitable  day  for  making 
necessary  improvements  and  embellishments.  Let  the  matrons  and 
maids  assist.  Let  the  children  participate  in  the  work ;  they  should 
share  the  pleasure  and  receive  the  lesson  it  would  teach. 

2.  To  examine  persons  offering  themselves  as  candidates  for  teachers  of 
public  schools,  in  order  to  determine  and  to  decide  upon  their  capacity, 
and  to  grant  them  certificates  of  qualification,  in  such  forms  as  shall  be 
prescribed  by  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  which  certificates, 
according  to  the  terms  thereof,  shall  be  evidence  of  the  qualifications  of 
such  teachers  in  the  district  of  the  county  to  which  such  commissioner 
shall  be  elected,  or  to  which  he  shall  be  assigned  in  accordance  with  the 
provisions  of  this  act. 

The  commissioners,  being  the  only  persons  in  their  several  districts 
authorized  to  grant  certificates,  should  be  prepared  to  make  examinations, 
whenever  making  their  round  of  visitations.  To  afford  every  reasonable 
accommodation  to  persons  who  may  offer  themselves,  they  should 
appoint  some  particular  day  and  place,  in  each  town,  where  they  will 
be  in  readiness  to  examine  teachers.  It  would  also  be  well  to  give 
notice  in  the  county  papers  in  the  spring  and  fall,  just  before  the  sum- 
mer and  winter  terms  generally  commence,  of  certain  times  and  places 


16G  DUTIES  OF 

at  which  applications  may  be  made  to  them  for  licenses.  Such  notices 
would  probably  bring  together  several  applicants,  and  thereby  lessen 
the  labor  and  time  required  for  examination.  One  or  more  hours  of 
each  day  might  be  set  apart  for  this  purpose,  at  the  time  of  holding  a 
teachers'  institute. 

The  examination  should  be  confined  to  ascertaining  the  qualifications 
of  candidates,  under  three  heads,  viz :  in  respect,  first,  to  moral  charac- 
ter ;  second,  learning ;  third,  ability. 

First.  The  testimonials  as  to  moral  character  should  be  full  and 
explicit,  and  should  be  from  persons  long  and  intimately  acquainted 
with  the  applicant.  This  is  no  unimportant  matter ;  and  this  department 
establishes  it  as  a  positive  regulation,  that  no  certificate  is  to  be  granted 
without  entire  satisfaction  on  this  point.  The  training  of  youth  must 
not  be  committed  to  persons  of  bad  manners  and  questionable  morals. 
Children  will  necessarily  be  more  or  less  influenced  by  the  example  of 
their  teachers,  whose  principles,  therefore,  should  be  such  as  to  inspire 
confidence,  and  whose  behavior  worthy  of  imitation. 

The  commissioner  will  be  careful  not  to  push  his  inquiries  beyond 
the  field  of  morals,  and  extend  them  into  the  debatable  ground  of  opinion, 
religious  or  political.  All  he  can  ask  is  that  the  applicant  shall  hold  a  fair 
reputation,  free  from  the  reproach  of  crime,  or  any  taint  of  immorality. 
lie  would  be  justified  in  rejecting  a  noisy  zealot,  with  manners  rude, 
obtrusive  and  offensive,  indicating  uncurbed  passions  and  unsound  prin- 
ciples of  conduct,  liable  to  render  him  obnoxious  to  the  inhabitants  and 
unfit  for  a  teacher  of  youth.  The  use  of  intoxicating  liquors  would  be 
a  serious  objection  to  the  character  of  a  teacher.  Temperance  and 
sobriety  should  be  demanded  of  every  applicant.  The  objection  is  to 
the  drinking  of  spirituous  liquors,  and  not  to  drunkenness  only.  Per- 
sons under  the  influence  of  intoxicating  drinks  seldom  act  calmly  and 
deliberately,  but  are  liable  to  outbreaks  of  passion,  moments  of  petulance, 
seasons  of  unnatural  excitement  or  depression,  entirely  unfitting  them 
for  the  government  of  a  school  or  the  management  of  young  people. 

The  man  who  puts  the  inebriating  cup  to  the  lips  of  a  child  is 
instinctively  execrated,  and  no  voice  is  ever  raised  to  justify  the  inhuman 
act.  However  besotted  and  degraded  a  man  may  be,  he  would  be  glad 
to  have  his  children  grow  up  pure,  temperate  and  respected.  In  all 
nations,  and  all  ages  the  corrupters  of  youth  have  been  stigmatized  as 
the  worst  enemies  of  society  and  of  the  state.  A  rule,  therefore,  which 
excludes  from  the  office  of  teacher  the  habitual  drinker  of  intoxicating 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  107 

liquors,  harmonizes  with  the  better  feelings  of  the  inebriate  himself,   as 
well  as  with  the  general  sense  of  mankind. 

Second.  As  to  the  learning  of  applicants. 

The  improvement  in  text  books,  the  use  of  charts  and  philosophical 
apparatus,  and  the  general  diffusion  of  knowledge,  has  raised  the  stan 
dard  of  qualification  for  teachers  within  the  last  ten  years.  Notwith- 
standing the  faults  and  defects  of  our  school  system,  there  is  abundant 
proof  that  it  has  produced  fruit  an  hundred  fold,  and  that  our  common 
schools,  throughout  the  state,  are  now  the  best  schools,  and  have  almost 
entirely  superseded  private  instruction.  While,  therefore,  teachers  must 
bear  an  examination  on  the  same  subjects  as  formerly,  a  much  more 
minute,  accurate  and  extensive  knowledge  of  them  is  required. 

In  spelling,  reading  and  penmanship,  they  are  expected  to  be  profi- 
cients, and  they  should  also  be  well  versed : 

1st.  In  the  definition  of  words; 

2d.  In  arithmetic,  mental  and  written ; 

3d.  In  geography ; 

4th.  In  the  use  of  charts,  globes  and  school  apparatus. 

5th.  In  the  principles  of  English  grammar ;  and, 

6th.  In  the  history  of  the  United  States,  England,  and  of  Europe 
generally,  and  in  universal  history ; 

7.  In  the  science  of  government,  at  least  they  should  know  the  char- 
acter and  operation  of  our  own  state  and  national  governments. 

In  a  large  majority  of  the  schools,  a  limited  acquaintance  with  the 
last  three  heads  is  admissible,  if  the  applicant  is  familiar  with  the  other 
branches. 

It  may  be  advisable,  also,  if  the  power  is  exercised  with  due  discretion, 
to  grant  certificates  permitting  the  holder  to  teach  a  particular  school, 
or  to  occupy  the  post  of  an  assistant  in  departmental  schools.  The 
same  extent  and  degree  of  knowledge  is  not  needed  to  fill  a  subordinate 
place,  and  hear  recitations  in  primary  classes,  as  to  take  charge  of  a 
large  school.  Many  summer  schools  may  also  be  profitably  intrusted 
to  young  girls,  not  qualified  by  age,  education  or  experience  to  take 
charge  of  large  schools. 

In  some  schools,  especially  in  high  and  union  free  schools,  the  range 
of  examination  might  include  the  higher  branches  of  mathematics, 
physiology  and  mental  philosophy. 

In  all  cases  a  familiarity  with  the  current  history  of  the  present  time, 
gathered  from  newspapers,  should  be  required. 


108  DUTIES  OF 

Third.  Ability  to  teach.  This  implies  something  more  than  good 
character  and  mere  learning.  A  faculty  of  imparting  knowledge  is 
essential  to  success  as  a  teacher.  The  management  of  a  school  requires 
a  certain  tact  in  dealing  with  children  ;  a  patience  and  good  nature  not 
possessed  by  every  one,  and  by  very  few  in  the  same  degree.  The  com- 
missioners, by  general  inquiries  and  by  pertinent  questions  to  the  appli- 
cant, on  personal  examination,  may  form  a  very  fair  judgment  of  his 
qualifications  in  these  respects.  Subsequently,  their  observations  on 
visiting  the  schools  will  enable  them  to  correct  their  judgment.  Certifi- 
cates, in  the  first  instance,  should  be  granted  for  a  term  not  exceeding 
a  year.  A  second  one  should  not  be  given  to  a  person  whose  ill  nature, 
or  petulance,  or  want  of  tact,  or  incapacity  to  impart  instruction, 
disqualifies  him  for  the  proper  government  of  a  school. 

Having  satisfied  themselves  of  the  qualifications  of  the  applicant,  the 
commissioners  will  grant  certificates,  in  the  following  forms : 

Certificate  of  the  First  Grade. 

To    ALL     TO    WHOM     THESE     PRESENTS     SHALL     COME  :       Be    IT    KNOWN, 

that  I,  ,  school  commissioner  for  the  district,  in  the 

county  of  ,  having  examined  A.  B.,  and  having  ascertained 

his  qualifications  in  respect  to  moral  character,  learning  and  ability  to 
instruct  a  common  school,  do  hereby  certify  that  he  is  duly  qualified, 
and  that  his  experience  in  and  devotion  to  the  profession  entitle  him  to 
the  rank  of  a  teacher  of  the  first  grade,  and  he  is  accordingly  herebv 
licensed  to  teach  any  common  school  in  this  district  for  three  years 
from  this  date. 

Given  under  my  hand,  this  day  of  ,  in  the   year   one 

thousand  eight  hundred  and 

C.  D. 

Certificate  of  the  Second  Grade. 

To     ALL    TO     WHOM    THESE    PRESENTS    SHALL    COME  :        Be     IT    KNOWN, 

that  I,  ,  school  commissioner  for  the  district,  in  the 

county  of  ,  having  examined  ,  and  having  ascer- 

tained his  qualifications  in  respect  to  moral  character,  learning  and 
ability  to  instruct  a  common  school,  do  hereby  certify  that  he  is 
qualified  and  entitled  to  the  rank  of  a  teacher  of  the  second  grade,  and 
he  is  accordingly  licensed  to  teach  common  schools  in  any  town  in 
this  district  for  the  term  of  one  year  from  this  date. 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  169 

Given  under  my  hand,  this  day  of  ,  in  the  year  one 

thousand  eight  hundred  and 

CD. 

Third  Grade — Limited  Forms. 

To    ALL    TO    WHOM     THESE     PRESENTS     SHALL     COME  :      Be    IT    KNOWN, 

that  I,  ,  school  commissioner  for  the  district,  in  the 

county  of  ,  having  examined  A.  B.,  and  having  ascertained 

his  qualifications  in  respect  to  moral  character,  learning  and  ability  to 
instruct  a  common  school,  do  hereby  certify  that  he  is  entitled  to  the 
rank  of  a  teacher  of  the  third  grade,  and  is  qualified  to  teach  the  school 
in  District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  ,  in  this  district,  and 

not  elsewhere,  and  he  is  accordingly  hereby  licensed  to  teach  the  said 
school  for  the  term  of  one  year  from  this  date. 

Given  under  my  hand,  &c.  C.  D. 

Another. 

To    ALL     TO     WHOM    THESE     PRESENTS    SHALL    COME  :       Be     IT    KNOWN, 

that  I,  ,  school  commissioner  for  the  district,  in  the 

county  of  ,  having  examined  ,  and  having  ascertained 

qualifications  in  respect  to  moral  character,  learning  and  ability 
to  instruct  a  common  school,  do  hereby  certify  that  he  is  entitled  to 
the  rank  of  a  teacher  of  the  third  grade,  and  is  qualified  for  the  place 
of  first  (or  second)  assistant  in  the  school  in  the  district,  in  the 

town  of  ,  and  is  accordingly  hereby  licensed  to  teach  in 

said  school  in  that  capacity  for  one  year  from  this  date. 

Given  under,  &c.  C.  D. 

Another. 

To  all  to  whom  these  presents  shall  come  :  Be  it  known, 
that  I,  ,  school  commissioner  for  the  district,   in  the 

county  of  ,  having  examined  A.  B.,  and  having  ascertained 

his  qualifications  in  respect  to  moral  character,  learning  and  ability  to 
instruct  a  common  school,  do  hereby  certify  that  he  is  entitled  to  the 
rank  of  a  teacher  of  the  third  grade,  and  is  qualified  to  be  a  teacher  in 
the  primary  department  in  the  public  schools  in  this  district  (or  city), 
and  he  is  accordingly  hereby  licensed  to  teach  in  that  capacity  for  one 
year  from  this  date. 

Given,  &c.  C.  D. 

[Code.]  22 


170  DUTIES  OF 

Certificates  of  the  FiRSTGRADEare  intended  for  those  who  have  had  expe- 
rience in  their  profession,  who  are  endowed  by  nature  with  a  peculiar  tact 
or  \\  ho  have  acquired  a  superior  skill,  in  the  management  of  youth  and 
the  government  of  schools,  and  should  be  granted  to  those  only  who 
can  bear  an  examination  in  the  whole  range  of  studies  taught  in  com- 
mon schools.  Every  qualification  heretofore  and  hereafter  indicated  as 
necessary  or  valuable  in  a  teacher  should  be  possessed  by  the  applicant. 

Candidates  for  the  second  grade  should  be  familiar  with  the  rules  of 
elocution  and  pronunciation,  and  be  able  to  read  with  ease,  intelligence 
and  expression  ;  they  should  write  a  bold,  plain  hand,  and  be  able  to  teach 
some  good  system  of  writing ;  they  should  be  fully  versed  in  mental 
and  commercial  arithmetic,  and  well  fitted  to  teach  fractions,  and  the 
involution  and  evolution  of  roots;  they  should  be  able  to  teach  book- 
keeping by  single  entry;  they  should  know  the  common  rules  of 
orthography,  and  be  able  to  parse  any  sentence  in  prose  or  poetry 
submitted  to  them,  and  to  write  grammatically,  with  correct  spelling 
and  punctuation,  the  substance  of  any  passage  which  may  be  read  to 
them ;  and  be  entirely  familiar  with  the  elements  of  physical,  civil  and 
political  geography,  as  contained  in  any  common  school  geography. 

In  short,  the  second  grade  certificates  are  intended  for  those  who,  with 
less  experience  and  a  more  limited  acquaintance  with  some  of  the  higher 
branches,  have,  nevertheless,  proved  themselves  able  to  impart  to  others 
what  they  have  themselves  acquired,  and  who  have  attained  the  skill 
necessary  to  govern  a  school,  but  who,  on  account  of  their  youth  or 
their  want  of  opportunity,  are  fully  prepared  to  teach  only  the  ordinary 
studies  considered  essential  in  the  common  schools. 

Candidates  for  the  third  grade  certificates  should  be  required  to  spell 
correctly  the  words  of  any  ordinary  sentence  dictated  by  the  commis- 
sioner ;  to  read  distinctly  and  intelligently  any  passage  from  any 
ordinary  reading  book  ;  to  work  readily  questions  in  common  arithmetic  • 
to  understand  the  elements  of  English  grammar,  and  to  parse  any  easy 
sentence  in  prose ;  to  have  a  knowledge  of  the  elements  of  geographv, 
and  the  general  outlines  of  the  globe ;  to  write  a  plain,  open  hand,  and 
to  exhibit  good  taste  in  the  arrangement  of  words  and  paragraphs ;  to 
write  letters  intelligibly  and  grammatically,  and  to  fold  and  superscribe 
them  properly ;  and  to  know  so  much  of  morals  and  discipline  as  to 
appreciate  the  importance  of  self-government. 

The  third  grade  certificates  are  intended  for  temporary  licenses,  to  be 
granted   to   novitiates   and   persons    who    for   lack    of    experience    or 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  171 

ability  have  need  to  acquire  the  knowledge  and  skill  necessary  for 
higher  positions. 

But  the  best  set  of  rules  and  regulations  respecting  the  examination  of 
candidates  must,  after  all,  be  regarded  only  as  a  partial  help  to  the 
commissioner.  The  wisdom  and  justice  of  his  conclusions  will  depend 
mainly  upon  his  own  judgment.  Whatever*  gift,  or  acquirement,  or 
habit  of  thought  and  action  may  constitute  his  ideal  of  the  true  teacher, 
the  applicants  will  nearly  all  come  short  of  it.  He  can  only  look  hope- 
fully for  an  approximation,  and  grant  his  certificates  to  those  who 
approach  nearest  to  his  ideal. 

In  pursuance  of  the  discretion  vested  in  the  State  Superintendent  of 
Public  Instruction,  it  is  established  as  a  regulation  that  no  certificate 
shall  be  granted  by  any  commissioner  for  a  longer  period  than  three  years. 

3.  To  annul  any  certificate  granted  to  any  teacher  by  him,  or  by  his 
predecessor,  or  by  any  town  or  county  superintendent,  whenever  such 
teacher  shall  be  found  deficient,  and  to  examine,  upon  reasonable  notice 
and  opportunity  of  defence  to  the  teacher,  into  all  charges  affecting  the 
moral  character  of  the  teacher  which  may  be  presented  as  a  cause  for 
annulling  a  certificate,  by  whomsoever  such  certificate  may  have  been 
granted,  and  he  shall  report  every  instance  of  such  examination,  the 
evidence  which  may  be  presented  in  the  case  to  the  Superintendent  of 
Public  Instruction,  immediately  after  the  conclusion  of  such  examination. 

By  virtue  of  the  11th  section  of  chap.  382  of  1849,  which  is  unre- 
pealed, a  diploma  from  the  State  Normal  School  entitles  its  possessor 
to  be  deemed  a  qualified  teacher  anywhere  in  the  state,  and  a  certificate 
from  a  former  county  superintendent  has  the  same  effect  within  the 
county  where  it  was  granted. 

The  grounds  for  annulling  a  certificate  are  two :  1st.  Deficiency  in 
learning,  and  ability  to  teach ;  and,  2d.  Immoral  character. 

1.  On  the  first  point  the  commissioner  can  satisfy  himself  by  personal 
examination,  or  by  observations  made  in  school,  or  by  proof  of  cruel 
conduct,  and  exhibitions  of  bad  temper,  and  ungoverned  passions.  If 
the  deficiency  is  within  the  commissioner's  own  knowledge,  he  should 
immediately  reexamine  the  teacher,  if  it  relates  to  learning ;  and  if  to 
bad  temper  or  bad  morals,  he  should  institute  an  examination,  giving 
the  teacher  proper  notice,  and  unless  he  satisfactorily  explain  his 
conduct,  or  exculpate  his  character,  his  certificate  may  be  annulled ; 
but  if  complaint  of  deficiency  be  made  by  others  to  the  com- 
missioner, he  should  give  the  teacher  notice  of  some  day  and  place  at 
which  he  will  examine  him,  and  hear  proof  on  behalf  of  both  com- 
plainants and  teacher. 


172  DUTIES  OF 

When  complaint  is  made  of  deficiency  in  moral  character,  full 
opportunity  should  be  given  the  teacher  for  defence.  He  should  be 
made  acquainted  with  the  precise  charges  affecting  his  character,  and 
ample  time  allowed  to  prepare  proofs  and  bring  witnesses  to  explain  or 
disprove  them. 

The  refusal  of  any  person  to  submit  to  an  examination  to  ascertain 
his  qualifications  as  to  learning  and  ability,  or  a  failure  to  appear  and 
answer  charges  touching  his  moral  character,  after  due  notice  of  the 
time  and  place  for  a  hearing,  would  be  an  admission  of  incompetency 
or  immorality,  as  the  case  might  be,  sufficient  to  justify  the  annulling 
of  his  certificate. 

The  mode  of  procedure  is  not  prescribed  by  the  statute  in  express 
terms.  It  will  therefore  be  safer  to  consider  §  37  of  chap.  480,  Laws  of 
1847,  as  still  in  force,  and  as  controlling  the  manner  in  which  the 
school  commissioner  is  to  exercise  this  power. 

The  section  is  as  follows  : 

"§  37.  The  town  superintendent  may  annul  any  such  certificate  given 
by  him,  or  his  predecessors  in  office,  when  he  shall  think  proper, 
giving  at  least  ten  days'  previous  notice,  in  writing,  to  the  teacher  hold- 
ing it,  and  to  the  trustees  of  the  district  in  which  he  may  be  employed, 
of  his  intention  to  annul  the  same." 

In  10th  Barbour's  Reports,  296,  it  was  held  by  the  supreme  court 
that  ten  days'  notice,  and  an  order  at  the  expiration  of  that  time,  were 
necessary  to  annul  the  certificate  of  a  teacher.  In  that  case,  the  super- 
intendent examined  a  teacher  on  the  last  day  of  January,  and,  as  he 
testified,  decided  him  to  be  incompetent  to  teach,  on  account  of  his 
education  being  in  some  respects  insufficient,  and  annulled  his  certificate. 
On  the  2d  of  February  he  gave  notice  to  the  teacher  that  he 
intended  to  annul  his  certificate,  and  filed  a  similar  notice  with  the  town 
clerk,  i'  to  take  effect  February  12th."  The  court  say  that  the  order 
annulling  the  certificate  must  be  in  writing,  and,  commenting  on  the 
evidence  of  the  superintendent,  remark :  "  he  doubtless  formed  the 
mental  conclusion  that  he  would  annul  the  certificate,  and  gave  notice 
to  that  effect.  This  was  not  a  compliance  with  the  provisions  of  the 
law.  A  notice  of  an  intention  to  do  an  act  is  not  an  actual  performance. 
The  object  of  the  statute  in  requiring  notice  was  to  fulfil  the  great 
requirement  of  justice,  that  no  man  shall  be  condemned  unheard.  The 
parties  were  entitled  to  a  day  before  the  superintendent,  of  which  they 
were  to  have  ten  days'  notice.  To  the  teacher  it  was  a  matter  of  deep 
concern  that  he  should  have  an   opportunity  of  resisting  a  sentence   of 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONRS.  173 

degradation,  affecting  his  character  and  his  prospects  of  usefulness  in  life. 
It  does  not  appear  that  the  superintendent  made  any  order  at  the  expi- 
ration of  the  ten  days  mentioned  in  the  notice.  The  contrary  is  con- 
clusively to  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  he  left  the  state  on  the  1th 
of  February,  and  did  not  return  until  three  weeks  afterwards.  It 
follows,  therefore,  that  the  certificate  of  the  teacher  was  not  legally 
annulled  on  the  3d  of  February,  nor  indeed  on  any  day  in  that 
month." 

It  is  undoubtedly  the  right  of  the  commissioner  to  examine  a  teacher 
in  respect  to  his  literary  qualifications,  and  to  satisfy  himself,  by 
inspection  of  his  method  of  conducting  school  exercises,  as  to  his 
intellectual  and  moral  capacity  to  teach,  without  previous  notice.  A  very 
unfavorable  impression  might  often  be  formed,  and  that  justly,  which 
the  teacher  could  remove  by  showing   facts  not  apparent  upon  the 

examination. 

The  notice  may  be  in  the  following  form,  and  should  be  served  per- 
sonally upon  the  teacher  and  upon  one  or  more  of  the  trustees  in  whose 
employment  he  may  be. 

Take  notice,  that  it  is  my  intention  to  annul  the  certificate  of  R.  S. 
a  teacher  employed  in  District  No.  ,  of  the  town  of 

for  want  of  sufficient  literary  qualifications  (or  ability  to  teach,  or  what- 
ever the  cause  may  be),  unless  cause  to  the  contrary  shall  be  shown  on 
or  before  the  day  of 

A.  B., 

School  Commissioner. 

At  the  expiration  of  the  notice,  if  the  commissioner  determine  to 
annul  the  certificate,  he  should  make  an  order,  substantially  as  follows : 

Notice  having  been  given  by  me  in  writing,  at  least  ten  days  pre- 
vious to  the  day  of  ,  to  R.  S.,  a  teacher  employed  in 
District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  ,  and  also  to  the  trustees  of 
such  district,  of  my  intention  to  annul  the  certificate  of  such  teacher  for 
want  of  sufficient  literary  qualification  (or  ability  to  teach,  or  as  the 
case  may  be),  unless  cause  to  the  contrary  were  shown  on  or  before 
the  day  aforesaid,  and  no  cause  having  been  shown  (or  if  the  parties 
have  appeared  to  show  cause,  after  hearing  the  proofs  and  allegations  of 
the  said  R.  S.  (or  the  trustees),  and  mature  deliberation  being  thereupon 
had),  it  is  hereby  ordered  that  the  certificate  of  qualification  of  the  said 


174  DUTIES  OF 

II.  S.  as  a  teacher  of  common  schools  be,  for  the  cause  aforesaid,  and 
the  same  is  hereby  annulled.     Dated  this  day  of 

A.  B., 

School  Commissioner  for,  dec. 

2.  If  charges  affecting  the  moral  character  of  the  teacher  be  pre- 
sented, the  notice  should  be  : 

Take  notice  that  the  following  charges,  affecting  the  moral  character 
of  R.  S.,  a  teacher  employed  in  District  No.        ,  of  the  town  of  , 

have  been   presented  by  James  Jackson,  of  the  town  of  ,  as  a 

cause  for  annulling  the  certificate  of  said  teacher,  viz  :  (  Here  recite  the 
charges,  in  which  the  precise  nature,  time,  place  and  circumstances  of 
the  offences  imputed  to  the  teacher  should  be  stated) ;  and  that  I  shall 
proceed  to  examine  into  the  charges  aforesaid,  and  to  hear  the  defence 
of  the  said  teacher  at        o'clock  of  the        day  of  ,  at  ,  in 

the  town  of 

C.  O., 

School  Cammissioner  for  ,  etc. 

It  is  believed  that  a  commissioner  ought  not  to  subject  a  teacher  to 
the  notoriety  of  a  public  accusation,  unless  some  person  shall  make 
complaint  to  him,  and  sustain  it  by  his  own  oath  or  that  of  witnesses 
whom  he  produces.  He  should  ascertain  that  there  is  probable  cause 
for  proceeding  in  substantially  the  same  manner  as  a  justice  of  the 
peace,  to  whom  application  is  made  for  a  criminal  warrant.  He  may, 
for  this  purpose,  administer  oaths,  examine  the  complainant  and  his 
witnesses  orally,  and  reduce  their  testimony  to  writing. 

The  charges  must  be  direct  and  positive  of  such  offences  as  would 
justify  the  annulling  of  the  certificate.  They  ought  to  be  sufficiently 
particular  to  apprise  the  teacher  of  what  he  is  accused,  and  enable  him 
to  prepare  for  defence ;  for  example,  if  an  immoral  habit,  as  profane 
swearing,  licentiousness,  intemperance  in  the  use  of  spirituous  liquors, 
is  charged,  one  or  more  instances  of  it  should  be  specified. 

When  the  time  for  examination  arrives,  it  is  for  the  complainant  first 
to  adduce  evidence  in  support  of  his  charges.  The  accused  is  not 
bound  to  offer  any  testimony  until  something  is  proved  against  him  by 
witnesses  whom  he  has  the  opportunity  to  cross-examine.  The  pre- 
liminary complaint  is  only  for  the  purpose  of  putting  him  upon  trial; 
but  is  not  evidence  upon  the  trial,  unless  for  the  purpose  of  discrediting 
the. witnesses,  by  showing  that  they  have  testified  differently  as  to  the 
same  transaction. 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  175 

As  the  commissioner  is  required  to  report  the  evidence  to  the  State 
Superintendent,  he  should  take  full  minutes,  as  it  is  given,  as  nearly  as 
possible  in  the  language  of  the  witnesses.  It  would  be  well,  also,  though 
not  indispensable,  that  the  testimony  of  each  witness  should  be  read  over 
to  and  subscribed  by  him  as  soon  as  he  has  concluded. 

The  statute  contemplates  a  decision  by  the  commissioner,  the  testi- 
mony being  reported  to  the  State  Superintendent  for  review,  only  in 
case  an  appeal  is  brought  from  the  decision. 

The  commissioner  should  draw  two  copies  of  his  instrument  annulling 
a  certificate,  one  of  which  he  should  keep,  and  the  other  serve  upon  the 
teacher.  The  trustees,  also,  should  be  notified  of  the  fact  immediately, 
in  order  to  save  the  district  from  the  loss  of  the  public  money  conse- 
quent upon  the  employment  of  a  teacher  without  a  licence. 

The  commissioners  are  instructed  to  report,  once  in  three  months, 
to  this  department,  the  names  of  all  teachers  whose  certificates  have 
been  annulled,  with  the  cause  of  such  proceeding. 

They  should  also  keep  a  register  of  the  names  of  all  persons  to  whom 
they  grant  certificates  of  qualification,  with  the  date  of  each  certificate 
and  the  term  and  place  for  which  it  was  given ;  and  also  the  names  of 
all  persons  whose  certificates  are  annulled  by  them,  with  the  date,  and 
the  general  reasons  therefor. 

The  proceedings  of  the  commissioners,  in  respect  to  the  granting  and 
annulling  of  certificates,  are  subject  to  appeal  to  the  State  Superinten- 
dent, by  any  person  feeling  himself  aggrieved.     • 

4.  To  organize  and  conduct  at  least  once  in  each  year,  in  his  own 
district  or  in  concert  with  the  commissioner  or  commissioners  of  one  or 
more  adjoining  districts  in  the  same  county,  a  teachers'  institute,  and 
to  induce,  if  possible,  all  the  common  school  teachers  in  his  district  to 
be  present  and  take  part  in  the  exercises  of  such  institute  ;  and  to 
perform  the  duties  imposed  by  chap.  361,  Laws  of  1847,  upon  town 
superintendents,  and  to  give  the  notice  therein  required  to  be  given  by 
the  county  clerk. 

By  this  provision  of  law,  all  the  duties  imposed  chap.  361,  Laws 
of  1847,  upon  the  county  clerk  and  town  superintendents,  are  charged 
upon  the  school  commissioner.  It  is  made  his  duty  to  organize  and 
conduct  an  institute,  at  least  once  in  each  year,  in  his  own  district,  or 
in  concert  with  the  other  commissioners  in  the  same  county.  Probably  a 
single  institute  in  each  county  will  answer  every  desirable  purpose. 


11 G  DUTIES  OF 

An  Act  for  the  establishment  of  teachers'  institutes. 

Passed  November  13th,  1847,  "three-fifths  being  present." 

The  People  of  the  State  of  New -York,  represented  in  Senate  and 
Assembly,  do  enact  as  follows  : 

§  1.  The  treasurer  shall  pa)7,  on  the  warrant  of  the  comptroller,  to 
the  order  of  the  several  county  treasurers  of  this  state,  the  several  sums 
of  money  hereinafter  mentioned,  not  exceeding  sixty  dollars  annually 
to  any  one  county,  from  the  income  of  the  United  States  deposit 
fund,  to  be  expended  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  teachers'  institutes, 
as  hereinafter  provided. 

§  2.  Whenever  a  majority  of  town  superintendents  of  common 
schools  in  any  county  in  this  state  unite  in  a  recommendation,  and  file 
with  the  county  clerk  thereof  a  certificate,  signifying  their  desire  that  a 
teachers'  institute  should  be  organized  in  such  county  for  the  instruction 
and  improvement  of  common  school  teachers  for  such  county,  it  shall 
thereupon  be  the  duty  of  such  cleric  forthwith  to  appoint  three  town 
superintendents  of  the  county,  and  notify  them  of  their  appointment, 
to  constitute  an  advisory  committee,  to  make  the  necessary  arrangements 
for  organizing  and  managing  such  institute,  and  such  clerk  shall  also 
immediately  give  such  public  notice  in  such  manner  as  he  may  deem 
most  proper  to  the  teachers  of  common  schools  of  the  county,  and  to 
others  who  may  desire  to  become  such,  specifying  a  time  and  place 
when  and  where  the  teachers  may  meet  and  form  such  institute. 

§  3.  Whenever  any  institute  shall  have  been  organized,  as  herein 
provided,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  committee  and  they  shall  have 
power  to  secure  two  or  more  suitable  persons  to  lecture  before  such 
institute  upon  subjects  pertaining  to  common  school  teaching  and  disci- 
pline, and  various  educational  subjects  which  may  be  deemed  calculated 
to  qualify  common  school  teachers,  and  to  elevate  the  profession  of 
teaching,  and  to  improve  common  schools ;  and  said  committee  shall 
keep  an  accurate  account,  in  items,  of  the  necessary  expenses  of  such 
institute  in  procuring  said  lecturers,  and  otherwise,  and  shall  verify 
said  account  by  affidavit,  and  deliver  the  same  to  the  county  treasurer, 
to  be  audited  by  and  filed  with  him  when  application  shall  be  made  to 
such  treasurer,  as  hereinafter  provided. 

§  4.  Whenever  any  county  treasurer  shall  receive  satisfactory  evidence 
that  not  less  than  fifty,  or  in  counties  of  under  thirty  thousand  population, 
then  not  less  than  thirty  teachers  and  individuals  intending  to  become 
teachers  of  common  schools  within  one  year,  shall  have  been  in  regular 
attendance  on  the  instructions  and  lectures  of  the  institute  in  the 
county,  during  at  least  ten  working  days,  he  shall  audit  and  allow  the 
account  which  shall  be  presented  to  him  by  the  committee,  as  aforesaid, 
and  shall  pay  over  to  said  committee  the  amount  so  audited  and  allowed, 
not  exceeding  sixty  dollars  in  any  one  year,  to  be  disbursed  by  said 
committee  in  paying  the  expenses  incurred  by  the  institute,  as  aforesaid. 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  ill 

§  5.  Every  such  committee  shall  annually  transmit  to  the  State 
Superintendent  of  common  schools  a  catalogue  of  the  names  of  all 
persons  who  shall  have  attended  such  institute,  with  such  other  statis- 
tical information  and  within  such  time  as  may  be  prescribed  by  said 
State  Superintendent. 

§  6.  This  act  shall  take  effect  immediately. 

The  commissioner,  or  commissioners  where  two  or  more  unite,  will 
give  the  requisite  notice,  and  then  proceed  to  organize  and  conduct  an 
institute,  exercising  the  same  powers  and  performing  the  same  duties 
as,  heretofore,  the  advisory  committee,  under  the  same  act. 

The  commissioners  will  keep  an  accurate  account,  in  items,  of  all  the 
expenses  attending  the  institute,  verify  the  same  by  affidavit,  and  pre- 
sent it  to  the  county  treasurer. 

Form  of  Account  and  Affidavit. 
Expenses  attending  the  formation  and  holding  of  a  teachers'  insti- 
tute, at               ,  in  the  county  of               ,  beginning  on  the  day  of 
,18     ,  and  ending  on  the         day  of               ,  18     . 

Advertising  notice  (see  voucher  No.  1), $1   50 

Use  of  room  (see  voucher  No.  2), 3  00 

Fires  and  attendance  (see  voucher  No.  3), 10  00 

Paid  Mr.            for  lectures  and  instruction  (see  voucher  No.  4),  50  00 

Stationery  (see  voucher  No.  5), 5  00 

$69  00 

State  of  New-York,  ) 
County  of  ,  )     ' 

John  Doe,  school  commissioner  for  the  district  of  said  county, 
being  duly  sworn,  says  that  the  above  account  is  correct,  and  that  the 
several  items  therein  charged  comprise  the  expenses  incurred  by  him  in 
the  formation  and  holding  the  teachers'  institute  in  this  county,  at  the 
time  and  place  named,  and  that  no  part  of  said  account  has  been  paid 
or  satisfied. 

JOHN  DOE. 

Sworn  before  me,  this  ) 

day  of  ,18        .  j 

Richard  Roe, 

ComnCr  of  Deeds. 

A  list  of  all  the  teachers,  and  individuals  intending  to  become  teach- 
ers, attending   the  institute,  must  be  kept  by  the  commissioner  and 
[Code.]  23 


178  DUTIES  OF 

verified  by  his  affidavit.  Upon  presenting  this,  and  the  account  afore- 
said, to  the  county  treasurer,  he  is  bound  to  audit  the  account,  and  pay 
not  exceeding  sixty  dollars,  provided  it  appears  that  not  less  than  fifty, 
or  in  counties  of  under  30,000  population,  then  not  less  than  thirty 
persons,  above  described,  have  been  in  regular  attendance  upon  the 
teachings  and  lectures  of  the  institute  during  ten  working  days. 

In  the  location  of  the  institute,  reference  should  be  had  to  the  con- 
venience and  pecuniary  interests  of  the  persons  who  are  to  attend  it. 

The  time  of  holding  its  terms  should  be  fixed  with  a  view  not  to 
interfere  with  the  common  schools,  but  at  such  season  as  will  allow 
common  school  teachers  the  most  leisure  to  attend  the  institute. 

The  commissioner  or  commissioners  should,  before  giving  notice  of 
the  time  and  place,  secure  the  services  of  two  or  more  suitable  persons 
to  lecture  before  the  institute,  and  help  to  conduct  the  exercises.  The 
commissioner  will  have  the  general  direction  of  the  exercises,  and  may 
employ  as  many  persons  as  may  be  necessary,  to  lecture",  and  to  take 
charge  of  classes  to  be  instructed  in  subjects  pertaining  to  common 
schools,  teaching  and  discipline. 

In  pursuance  of  the  fifth  section  of  the  act,  the  commissioners  aie 
required  to  report  to  this  department : 

1st.  A  catalogue  of  the  names  of  all  the  persons  who  shall  have 
attended  such  institute,  their  place  of  residence  and  post-office  address ; 

2d.  The  names  of  the  officers  of  the  institute  and  the  lecturers ; 

3d.  A  statement  of  the  subjects  upon  which  lectures  have  been  deli- 
vered ; 

4th.  A  statement  of  the  classes  into  which  the  institute  was  divided, 
the  studies  pursued  and  the  text  books  used ; 

5th.  The  time  the  institute  was  organized,  the  length  of  such  term 
held  and  the  time  and  place  fixed  for  holding  future  terms ; 

6th.  A  copy  of  the  accounts  rendered  to  the  county  treasurer ; 

7th.  It  is  recommended  that  a  committee  be  appointed  to  make  a 
report  upon  the  condition  of  the  school  and  the  general  state  of  public 
instruction  in  the  county,  and  that  a  copy  of  that  report  be  transmitted 
to  the  State  Superintendent ; 

8th.  Any  other  information  that  the  committee  may  deem  interesting 
or  useful,  or  calculated  to  promote  the  cause  of  common  school  educa- 
tion. 

This  report  should  be  transmitted  to  the  State  Superintendent  on  or 
before  the  first  day  of  December  in  each  year. 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  179 

The  commissioner,  in  addition  to  the  published  notice  required  by 
law,  should  also  address  a  circular  to  every  teacher  in  his  district,  urging 
all  to  attend  the  institute. 

If  the  state,  as  there  is  very  little  reason  to  doubt,  shall  continue  its 
annual  appropriation,  the  institute  will  become  a  part  of  the  common 
school  system.  Teachers  cannot  fail  to  derive  much  benefit  from  the 
lectures,  the  instructions  and  conversations  of  the  institute.  By  com- 
paring the  various  modes  of  teaching  and  government ;  by  discussing  all 
the  topics  of  practical  duty;  by  a  critical  examination  of  different  text 
books,  and  by  aiding  and  counselling  each  other,  much  may  be  done  to 
promote  the  success  of  the  schools.  Not  the  least  among  the  advan- 
tages to  be  gained  by  these  annual  gatherings,  are  the  mutual  acquain- 
tances formed,  the  good  feeling  engendered,  the  encouragement  afforded, 
and  the  reciprocal  instruction  imparted,  which  will  serve  to  unite  and 
to  stimulate  all  to  vigorous  effort  in  the  common  cause.  If  the  fifteen 
thousand  teachers  in  this  state  will  form  themselves  into  town  and  county 
associations,  and  combine  all  their  energies,  and  act  unitedly  and  har- 
moniously, what  project  for  the  improvement  of  common  schools,  in 
whose  excellence  and  usefulness  are  centered  the  hopes  of  the  present 
and  of  future  generations,  could  they  not  urge  upon  public  attention, 
with  a  concentration  of  sentiment  and  a  weight  of  influence  which  would 
command  the  respect  and  secure  the  cooperation  of  all  good  men. 

5.  And  generally,  by  all  means  in  his  power,  to  promote  sound  edu- 
cation, elevate  the  character  and  qualification  of  teachers,  improve  the 
means  of  instruction  and  advance  the  interests  of  the  schools  committed 
to  his  charge. 

The  commissioners  are  not  expected  to  limit  their  labors  to  a  bare 
performance  of  the  duties  prescribed  by  law.  They  are,  on  the  con- 
trary, expected  to  devote  all  their  time  to  subjects  connected  with 
education.  The  preparation  of  lectures,  correspondence  with  teachers 
and  school  officers,  the  getting  up  and  management  of  institutes,  the 
taking  of  evidence  in  appeal  cases,  the  reconcilement  of  district  contro- 
versies, the  procurement  of  statistical  information,  the  making  out  of  the 
annual  reports,  all  require  diligent  study  during  the  intervals  of  active 
duty. 

No.  65.  All  the  duties  and  requirements  of  law  now 
imposed  upon  town  superintendents,  in  reference  to  the  for- 
mation, alteration,  dissolution,  consolidation  and  annulling  of 
school  districts,  the  building  of  school-houses,  the  selection  and 
change  of  sites,  and  in  relation  to  the  sale  of  school  district 


180  DUTIES  OF 

property,  and  the  disposal  and  apportionment  of  the  moneys 
arising  therefrom,  are  hereby  imposed  upon  the  school 
commissioner,  in  respect  to  the  several  towns  within  his 
jurisdiction;  and  he  shall  pay  over  the  said  moneys  to  the 
supervisors,  to  be  by  them  paid  to  the  districts  or  parts  of 
districts  which  may  be  entitled  to  receive  the  same.  ( Sec.  25, 
chap.  179  of  1856.) 

No.  66.  Any  commissioner  may,  at  any  time,  resign  his 
office  to  the  clerk  of  the  county  in  which  he  was  elected ; 
and  in  case  of  vacancy  from  such  cause,  or  by  death,  removal 
from  office  or  from  the  county,  or  refusal  to  accept,  the 
county  clerk  shall  give  immediate  notice  to  the  county  judge 
of  such  county,  who  shall  appoint  a  successor  to  fill  such 
vacancy  till  the  next  following  general  election,  when  a 
successor  shall  be  chosen  by  the  electors,  as  hereinbefore 
provided.  (Sec.  9,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

It  is  thought  that  the  person  appointed  to  fill  a  vacancy  can  only  hold 
the  office  until  such  time  as  the  officer  chosen  by  the  people  to  fill  the 
vacancy  shall  have  taken  the  oath  of  office. 

Persons  elected  at  the  general  elections  would  be  subject  to  the  fol 
lowing  provision : 

§  3.  All  officers  elected  by  the  people,  unless  they  shall  be  elected  to 
supply  vacancies  then  existing,  shall  enter  upon  the  duties  of  their 
respective  offices  on  the  first  day  of  January  following  the  election 
at  which  they  shall  be  chosen.  (R.  $.,  3d  ed.,  part  1,  chap.  5,  art.  1, 
§  3  ;  see  also  Const.,  art.  10,  §  6.) 

No.  67.  The  commissioners  shall  be  subject  to  such  rules 
and  regulations  as  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction 
shall  from  time  to  time  prescribe,  and  appeals  from  their  acts 
and  decisions  may  be  made  to  him  in  the  same  manner  and 
with  like  effect  as  in  cases  now  provided  by  law.  They  shall 
make  reports  annually  to  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion, at  such  times  as  shall  be  appointed  by  him,  containing 
such  information  as  he  shall  require ;  and  for  that  purpose 
the  annual  reports  of  the  trustees  of  school  districts  shall  be 
made  to  them,  and  be  deposited  with  the  town  clerks  of  the 
town  in  which  the  school-house  of  each  district  is  situated, 
from  whom  the  said  commissioners  shall  obtain  the  same. 
Henceforth  the  trustees  of  joint  districts,  composed  of  terri- 
tory lying  in  two  or  more  towns  in  the  same  county,  shall  be 
required  to  make  but  one  annual  report,  in  such  form  as  the 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS,  181 

State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  shall  prescribe. 
The  reports  of  the  trustees,  after  the  commissioner  shall  have 
made  his  abstract  therefrom,  shall  be  properly  arranged,  filed, 
and,  together  with  a  copy  of  his  own  annual  report,  shall  be 
deposited  in  the  office  of  the  county  clerk  for  safe  keeping. 
The  county  clerks  shall  not  be  required  to  make  returns  or 
abstracts  of  such  reports.  (Sec.  10,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 

The  annual  reports  of  the  trustees  of  school  districts  are  required  to 
be  made  between  the  1st  and  15th  days  of  January  in  each  year,  and 
filed  with  the  town  clerks.  The  commissioner  should  call  for  them 
promptly ;  and  if  any  districts  are  delinquent,  should  at  once  proceed 
to  ascertain  the  cause.  It  should  be  his  care,  if  possible,  to  cause  a 
report  to  be  made  by  every  district  in  his  jurisdiction,  and  he  should  aid 
trustees  who  may  need  his  counsel  and  advice. 

The  reports  of  the  commissioners  are  required  to  be  made  at  such 
times  and  to  contain  such  statistical  information  as  the  State  Superin- 
tendent shall  prescribe.  Blank  forms  will  be  annually  prepared  and 
distributed  to  the  commissioners,  and  circulars  will  be  addressed  to 
them,  with  instructions  as  to  the  information  required  and  the  time 
when  the  reports  must  be  completed,  and  deposited  in  the  mail  or  sent 
by  express  to  this  department. 

It  must  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  State  Superintendent  is  directed 
to  send  in  his  annual  report  to  the  legislature,  dated  December  31st  of 
each  year.  The  reports  of  commissioners  must,  therefore,  be  prepared 
two  or  three  months  previous  to  this  time ;  negligence  on  the  part  of 
one,  two  or  three  commissioners  will  necessarily  cause  serious  delay  and 
embarrassment  to  the  department,  as  the  superintendent  cannot  com- 
ment upon  results  until  all  the  details  are  received. 

No.  68.  Every  commissioner  shall  have  power  to  take 
affidavits  and  administer  oaths  in  all  matters  pertaining  to 
common  schools,  but  without  charge  or  fee ;  and,  under  the 
direction  of  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  may 
hear  and  report  to  him  testimony  in  all  cases  of  appeals. 
{Sec.  11,  chap.  179  0/1856.) 

It  was  not  the  design  of  this  section  to  supercede  the  present  mode 
established  by  regulation  of  presenting  testimony  upon  appeals  in  the 
form  of  written  affidavits,  but  to  enable  the  superintendent  to  obtain 
additional  light,  where  the  written  evidence  is  conflicting,  ambiguous  or 


182  DUTIES  OF 

otherwise  unsatisfactory,  by  the  oral  examination  of  witnesses  before  a 
commissioner.  Where  the  superintendent  conceives  this  necessary  or 
desirable,  an  order  will  be  made  in  the  case,  referring  it  to  the  proper 
commissioner  to  hear  and  report  all  testimony  which  may  be  produced 
before  him  by  the  respective  parties  to  the  appeal,  or  the  testimony  of 
particular  witnesses  named  in  the  order,  or  testimony  in  relation  to 
particular  issues  specified.  The  range  of  inquiry  will  be  limited  by  the 
terms  of  the  order. 

Upon  receiving  the  order,  the  commissioner  will  give  notice  to  both 
parties  of  the  time  and  place  at  which  he  will  hear  the  evidence  to  be 
produced  by  them  respectively,  if  the  reference  is  general,  or  of  the 
witness  named,  or  in  relation  to  particular  issues  or  subjects  of  inquiry, 
if  the  reference  is  limited  in  either  respect.  At  the  time  and  place 
appointed  the  commissioner  will  administer  an  oath  to  the  witnesses  in 
the  following  form : 

You  swear  (or  declare  and  affirm)  that  the  evidence  you  shall  give 
upon  this  hearing,  under  the  order  of  the  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction,  on  the  appeal  of  (reciting  the  title  of  the 

proceeding  as  the  same  is  given  in  the  entitling  of  the  order),  shall  be 
the  truth,  the  whole  truth,  and  nothing  but  the  truth,  so  help  you  God. 

The  evidence  of  each  witness  on  his  direct  examination  should  be 
reduced  to  writing,  read  over  to  the  witness,  any  additions  or  corrections 
he  desires  to  make  stated  (without  erasing  anything  that  has  been 
written),  and  then  subscribed  by  the  witness  and  certified  by  the 
commissioner,  before  the  witness  is  cross-examined.  The  cross-examina- 
tion is  to  be  taken,  corrected,  subscribed  and  certified  in  the  same 
manner. 

At  the  conclusion  of  the  examination  the  commissioner  should  endorse 
or  under-write  upon  the  original  order  "  The  execution  of  this  order 
appears  by  the  depositions  hereto  annexed.  A.  B.,  Commissioner."  He 
should  then  append  to  the  order  and  return  therewith  to  the  superin- 
tendent the  depositions  in  the  following  form  : 

i-rp-.i      777  :    Tu        i     t     \  Depositions  taken  on  the 

[Title  of  the  case  as  in  the  order.J      \       * 

'day  of  ,  at  ,  under 

an  order  of  the  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction,  dated  , 
before    A.   B.,    school    commis- 

Isioner  for  the  Assembly 

District  of  county. 


SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS.  183 

0.  J).,  a  witness  produced,  was  duly  sworn  by  said  commissioner,  and 
on  being  orally  examined  by  for  tbe  appellant  (or  respon- 

dent), deposcth  as  follows :  I  reside  in  the  town  of  ;  I  was 

present  at  a  meeting  held  in  District  No.  ,  on  the  10th  day  of 

May,  1856,  &c,  &c. 

On  hearing  the  above  read,  the  witness  further  deposcth  :  I  want  to  be 
understood  that  I  was  not  present  at  the  meeting  (give  the  witness' 
additions  and  corrections  to  his  testimony  as  reported). 

(signed)  C.  D. 

Subscribed  and  sworn  to  this  > 

day  of  ,  before  me,  y 

A.  B.,  Commissioner. 

On  being  cross-examined  by  for  the  respondent,  the  witness 

above  named  deposcth  :  I  saw  James  Jones  at  the  meeting  to  which  I 
have  testified.  lie  was  outside  of  the  building  when  the  meeting  was 
organized,  &c,  <fcc. 

The  commissioner  has  no  power  to  compel  the  attendance  of  witnesses. 
If  any  of  those  named  in  the  order  do  not  appear,  he  should  take  and 
report  the  evidence  of  the  parties,  showing  their  refusal  or  other  reason 
for  non-attendance. 

No.  69.  The  several  boards  of  supervisors,  whenever  in 
their  opinion  the  interests  of  education  in  their  respective 
counties  will  be  promoted  thereby,  may  increase  the  salary 
of  any  commissioner  to  such  sum  as  they  may  deem  reason- 
able and  just ;  but  the  supervisors  of  the  wards  in  any  city 
not  included  in  a  school  commissioner's  district  shall  not  vote 
upon  such  questions;  the  increase  over  and  above  the  five 
hundred  dollars,  payable  to  him  from  the  United  States  deposit 
fund,  to  be  a  charge  upon  the  county  or  district  over  which 
such  commissioner  may  have  jurisdiction ;  and  the  same  shall 
be  assessed  annually  upon  the  towns  composing  such  county 
or  district,  ratably,  according  to  the  corrected  valuations  of 
the  real  and  personal  estate  of  such  towns.  (Sec.  13,  chdjp. 
179  of  1856.) 

No.  70.  The  boards  of  supervisors  are  hereby  authorized 
and  required  to  audit  and  allow  to  such  commissioners  such 
sums  as  they  may  have  incurred  for  necessary  expenses  by 
them  in  the  performance  of  their  official  duties,  to  an  amount 


184  DUTY  OF  TOWN  CLERKS. 

not  exceeding  one  hundred  dollars.    ( Sec.  14,  chap.  179  of 
1856.) 

No.  71.  The  several  cities  in  this  state  which,  under  special 
acts,  already  elect  superintendents  of  common  schools,  or 
whose  boards  of  education  choose  clerks  doing  the  duty  of 
supervision  under  the  direction  of  the  board  of  education, 
shall  not  be  included  in  any  commissioner's  district  created 
by  this  act  or  authorized  to  be  formed  by  the  board  of  super- 
visors ;  and  the  several  boards  of  supervisors,  in  counties  in 
which  such  cities  are  joined  to  towns  in  the  formation  of  an 
assembly  district,  may  divide  the  county,  exclusive  of  such 
cities,  into  such  school  commissioners'  districts  as  they  may 
deem  advisable,  but  no  town  shall  be  divided  in  forming  such 
districts.  (Sec.  16,  chap.  179  of  1856.) 


OF  THE  DUTY  OF  TOWN  CLERKS. 

No.  72.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  town  clerk  of  each 
town : 

1.  To  receive  from  the  present  town  superintendents  all 
books,  maps  and  papers  appertaining  to  his  office,  and  to  file 
and  keep  them  in  the  town  clerk's  office ; 

2.  To  receive  from  the  supervisor  the  certificates  of  appor- 
tionments of  school  moneys  for  the  town,  and  record  them  in 
a  book  to  be  kept  for  that  purpose ; 

3.  To  notify  the  trustees  of  the  school  districts  when  such 
estimates  and  appropriations  are  filed  in  his  office ; 

4.  To  see  that  the  trustees  of  common  schools  make  and 
file  with  him  their  annual  reports  within  the  time  prescribed 
by  law ; 

5.  To  distribute  to  the  trustees  of  school  districts  all  blanks 
and  circulars  which  shall  be  delivered  or  forwarded  to  him  by 
the  commissioner  for  that  purpose  ; 

6.  To  receive  from  the  supervisor,  and  record  in  a  book 
kept  for  that  purpose,  the  annual  account  of  the  receipts  and 
disbursements  of  school  moneys  required  to  be  submitted  to 
the  town  auditors  and  filed  with  the  said  clerk,  and  to  send 
a  copy  thereof  by  mail  to  the  commissioner.  (  Sec.  28,  chap. 
179  o/1856.) 


OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS.  185 

The  duties  of  the  town  clerk,  as  a  member  in  certain  cases  of  the 
board  for  the  formation  and  alteration  of  districts,  are  discussed  under 
that  head.  It  may  be  his  duty  also  to  order  a  special  district  meeting 
in  the  case  mentioned  in  §  G6,  chap.  480,  Laws  of  1847.  (No  87,  post). 


OF  THE  FORMATION  AND  ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL 
DISTRICTS. 

No.  73.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  [school  commissioner, 
in  respect  to  the  several  towns  within  his  jurisdiction]  : 

1.  To  divide  the  town  into  a  convenient  number  of  school 
districts,  and  to  regulate  and  alter  such  districts  as  hereinafter 
provided ; 

2.  To  set  oft'  by  itself  any  neighborhood  in  the  town 
adjoining  to  any  other  state  of  this  Union,  where  it  has  been 
usual  or  shall  be  found  convenient  for  such  neighborhood  to 
send  their  children  to  a  school  in  such  adjoining  state; 

3.  To  describe  and  number  the  school  districts,  and  to 
deliver  the  description  and  numbers  thereof,  in  writing,  to 
the  town  clerk,  immediately  after  the  formation  or  alteration 
thereof; 

4.  To  deliver  to  such  town  clerk  a  description  of  each 
neighborhood  adjoining  to  any  other  state,  set  off  by  itself. 
(  Sec.  8,  chap.  480  of  1847,  school  commissioner  being  substituted 
for  toicn  superintendent,  in  conformity  to  No.  65. ) 

This  section,  so  far  as  it  concerns  the  formation  and  alteration  of  dis- 
tricts, relates  only  to  such  districts  as  are  formed  of  territory  lying 
wholly  within  the  jurisdiction  of  the  school  commissioner  acting  under 
it,  and  the  formation  or  alteration  of  which,  moreover,  does  not  affect 
any  other  district  which  is  wholly  or  partly  in  the  assembly  district  or 
section  of  another  school  commissioner.  If  the  district  to  be  formed, 
altered  or  regulated  includes  a  part  of  a  town  under  the  jurisdiction  of 
another  commissioner,  or  involves  the  division  of  a  joint  district,  any 
part  of  which  lies  within  such  other  jurisdiction,  it  is  necessary  that  all 
the  school  commissioners  should  unite  as  a  board  in  making  the  order 
for  such  alteration. 

The  case  is  now  exceedingly  rare  in  which  a  new  district  can  he 
formed,  or  any  district  be  altered,  without  its  necessarily  involving  an 

[Code.]  24 


186  OF  THE  FORMATION  AND 

alteration  of  some  other  district,  and  thus  rendering  it  necessary  to  pro- 
cure the  assent  of  trustees,  or  to  suspend  the  operation  of  the  order,  as 
provided  in  §  45,  chap.  480,  Laws  of  1847  (iVo.  76,  post). 

Where,  in  consequence  of  the  existence  of  doubts  in  respect  to  the 
true  boundaries  of  a  district,  it  becomes  expedient  for  the  commissioner 
to  make  a  new  description  thereof,  it  should  be  regarded  as  an  alteration, 
and  the  written  consent  of  the  trustees  of  all  the  districts  conterminous 
to  the  new  described  boundaries  should  be  subscribed  to  the  order,  or 
notice  should  be  given  to  them  of  such  order,  and  that  it  will  take  effect 
at  the  expiration  of  three  months  after  the  service  of  a  copy  thereof. 
This  rule  was  settled  in  a  case  where  an  appeal  was  taken  from  an  order 
describing  the  boundary  of  a  district,  and  in  which  the  answer  set  up 
that  the  boundary  thus  established  was  not  a  new  one,  but  only  the 
record  of  a  line  which  had  always  existed  as  the  true  boundary,  though 
the  written  evidence  was  wanting.  The  principle  is,  that  the  commis- 
sioner has  no  power  to  adjudicate  what  is,  but  only  to  determine  what 
shall  be  the  boundary  for  the  future. 

A  preliminary  notice  of  the  commissioner's  intention  to  make  an 
alteration  of  a  school  district  should  in  all  cases  be  given  to  the  trustees 
of  every  district  to  be  affected  thereby,  before  proceeding  to  make  any 
order  in  the  premises.  (See  Digest,  ante  page  91,  and  the  comment  under 
the  next  section,  N~o.  74. ) 

It  is  of  extreme  importance  that  the  description  of  a  district  should 
be  so  complete  and  definite  that  a  surveyor,  at  any  future  day,  may  be 
able  to  run  its  boundaries  without  reference  to  any  other  document 
than  the  order  forming,  altering  or  describing  it.  For  this  purpose  the 
exterior  lines  should  be  defined  by  reference  to  natural  monuments, 
marked  trees,  creeks,  &c.,  or  to  township  lines  of  historical  notoriety, 
such  as  the  lines  of  the  great  original  subdivisions  into  lots,  or  the 
course  of  highways.  Where  these  fail,  the  courses  and  distances  as 
ascertained  by  the  compass  and  chain  should  be  given.  The  practice 
of  stating  the  boundary  as  that  of  "  the  farm  now  in  the  occupation  of 
C.  D.,"  or  by  means  of  similar  designations,  frequently  renders  it  very 
difficult  to  ascertain  them,  as  the  occupation  of  land  is  continually 
shifting.  In  Gray  v.  Sheldon,  8th  Verm.  R.,  402,  a  resolution  "  to  set 
off  Isaac  Gray,  Jr.,  to  school  district  No.  3,"  was  held  void  on  the 
ground  that  school  districts  should  be  defined  by  geographical  limits, 
and  be  made  to  consist  of  territory  and  not  of  persons. 


ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS.  187 

The  form  of  an  order  may  be  as  follows : 

In  the  matter  of  the  formation  of  District  No.  ,  in  the 

town  of  ,  county   of  ,  and  the 

consequent  alteration  of  Districts  No.  in  said 

town,  and  No.  in  the  town  of  (or  in  the 

matter  of  the  description  of  District  No.  ,  as  the  case 

may  be), 

It  is  hereby  ordered,   by  the  undersigned  school    commissioner  for 

Assembly  District  No.  3,  of  the  county  of  ,  that  a  new 

school  district  be  formed,  to  consist  of  part  of  District  No.         ,  in  the 

town  of  M.,  and  part  of  District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  P.,  which 

new    district  is   hereby  numbered    [23],   and  is  bounded    as  follows  : 

Beginning  on  the  east  bank  of  Allen's  creek,  at  the  point   where  the 

same  is  intersected  by  the  north    line  of  the   highway  leading   from 

Brighton   to  Pittsford ;    thence   nortbeasterly  along   said    creek   to  its 

junction  with  Irondequoit  creek ;  thence  southeasterly    along  Ironde- 

quoit  creek  to  the  west  line  of  the  town  of  Brighton ;  thence  south 

along  the  boundary  line  between  the  towns  of  Brighton  and  Penfield 

to  the  north  line  of  Pittsford  ;  thence  west  on  said  north  line  to  the 

state  road  ;  thence  north  along  the  state  road  to  its  intersection   with 

the  highway  first  above  mentioned ;  thence  northwesterly   along  said 

highway  to  the  place  of  beginning. 

In  case  the  order  is  made  with  the  consent  of  the  trustees  of  the 
districts  affected  thereby,  or  of  any  such  districts,  the  evidence  of  such 
consent  should  be  annexed  to  the  order  in  substantially  the  following 
form : 

At  a  meeting  of  the   trustees  of  District  No.  ,  in   the  town 

of  ,  county  of  ,  called   for  the   purpose    of 

considering  certain  proposed  alterations  thereof,  held  on  the  day 

of  ,  at  which  were  present  J.  D.   and  R.   S.,  and  in  the 

absence  of  P.  T.,   a  trustee,   who,   having  been    duly   notified   of  such 
meeting,  failed  to  attend,  it  was 

Hesolved,  That  the  consent  of  the  trustees  of  District  No.  ,  in 

the  town  of  ,  be  and  hereby  is  given  to  the  alteration  of 

said  district  by  an  order  bearing  date  ,  made  by  , 

school  commissioner  for  the         Assembly  district  (or  section)  of 
county   (or  that  said  district  be  so  altered  as  to  be  hereafter  bounded  as 
follows,  describing  the  new  boundaries  fully). 


188  OF  THE  FORMATION  AND 

In  witness  whereof,  the  undersigned,  a  majority  of  the  said  trustees, 
have  hereunto  subscribed  our  hands  this  day  of 

■n'    a*'  [■  Trustees. 

The  consent  of  the  trustees  must  be  absolute,  not  conditional.  (See 
Digest,  ante,  p.  10.) 

In  case  a  majority  of  the  trustees  of  any  district  affected  by  the 
order  refuse  their  consent,  the  order  should  recite  that  fact,  and  that  it 
will  not  take  effect  until  after  three  months'  notice,  in  writing,  to  some 
one  or  more  of  such  trustees,  as  follows  : 

"  The  trustees  of  District  No.  not  having  consented  to  this 

order,  the  same  will  not  take  effect,  in  respect  to  such  last  mentioned 
district,  until  after  three  months'  notice,  in  writing,  shall  be  given  to 
some  one  or  more  of  such  trustees." 

Notice  should  in  that  case  be  immediately  served  upon  one  or  more 
of  the  trustees,  selecting  for  that  purpose  a  trustee  who  is  hostile  to  the 
alteration,  and  not  one  who  was  in  favor  of  consenting.  (See  ante, 
pp.  1,  2  and  89.)  A  written  admission  of  the  service  of  such  notice, 
signed  by  the  trustee  or  trustees  on  whom  it  is  made,  should  be  annexed 
to  the  original  order,  and  filed  with  it  in  the  town  clerk's  office,  so  that 
the  entire  history  of  the  transaction  and  the  date  at  which  the  order 
took  effect  may  be  ascertained  at  any  subsequent  time,  without  inquiry 
elsewhere  or  the  examination  of  other  documents. 

All  orders  making  alterations  in  joint  districts  must  be  put  on  record 
in  all  the  towns  of  which  such  districts  constitute  a  part,  even  though 
such  alterations  do  not  directly  affect  persons  residing  in  all  the  towns 
in  which  they  are  recorded  ;  "  Thus,  although  no  inhabitant  of  Tyrone 
was  taken  from  (Joint)  District  No.  6  to  form  No.  8,  the  order,  signed 
by  the  commissioners  of  both  towns,  should  have  been  recorded  in 
Tyrone,  because  No.  6  lies  partly  in  that  town.  It  is  clear  that  unless 
such  records  are  made,  the  commissioners  of  one  town  can  never  know 
the  boundaries  of  a  joint  district  without  resorting  to  records  in 
another  town,  over  which  they  have  no  control."  (Per.  Dix,  Supt.  Com. 
Schools  Dec,  p.  175.) 

No.  74.  In  the  erection  or  alteration  of  a  school  district, 
the  trustees  of  any  district  to  be  affected  thereby  may  apply 
to  the  supervisor  and  town  clerk  to  be  associated  with  the 
[school  commissioner],  and  their  action  shall  be  final,  unless 
duly  appealed  from  ;  the  compensation  of  the  supervisor  and 


ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS.  189 

town  clerk,  when  thus  associated,  shall  be  the  same  as  that 
of  the  town  superintendent.  ( Sec.  43,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modi- 
fied by  substituting  school  commissioner  for  town  superintendent,  in 
conformity  to  No.  65. ) 

This  section  was  originally  §  3,  chap.  133  of  1843,  and  was  then  first 
enacted  upon  the  substitution  of  a  town  superintendent  in  the  place  of  the 
former  town  board  of  commissioners  of  common  schools.  In  so  impor- 
tant a  matter  as  the  alteration  of  a  school  district,  the  legislature  deemed 
it  right  that  the  districts  to  be  affected  should  have  the  benefit  of  the 
consultation  and  judgment  of  a  board  composed  of  three  persons,  when- 
ever, for  any  reason,  they  elected  to  associate  them,  in  preference  to 
trusting  their  interests  to  the  sole  jurisdiction  of  the  town  superinten- 
dent. As  the  powers  of  the  school  commissioner  in  these  cases  are 
derived  only  from  the  transfer  to  him,  by  No.  65,  of  the  powers  formerly 
vested  in  the  town  superintendents,  it  is  to  be  inferred  that  the  school 
commissioner  is  to  exercise  his  jurisdiction  either  alone  or  in  conjunc- 
tion with  the  supervisor  and  town  clerk,  in  the  same  manner  as  a  town 
superintendent  would  have  done,  and  that  the  decisions  in  respect  to 
the  powers  and  duties  of  the  latter,  under  this  section,  are  applicable  to 
the  former. 

Section  31,  chap.  480  of  1847,  which  established  the  compensation 
of  town  superintendents,  and  to  which  the  above  section  refers,  for  that 
of  the  supervisor  and  town  clerk  when  acting  under  it,  is  as  follows : 

§  31.  The  town  superintendent  shall  be  entitled  to  receive  one  dollar 
and  twenty-five  cents  per  day  for  every  day  actually  and  necessarily 
devoted  by  him  in  his  official  capacity  to  the  service  of  the  town  for 
which  he  may  be  chosen,  the  same  to  be  paid  in  like  manner  as  other 
town  officers  are  paid. 

The  statute  has  not  prescribed  the  steps  to  be  taken  for  convening 
the  supervisor,  town  clerk  and  school  commissioner  to  deliberate  upon 
the  alteration  of  a  district.  It  has  been  decided  that  this  board  is  not 
an  appellate  tribunal,  to  sit  in  review  of  a  decision  made  by  the  school 
commissioner  (see  Digest,  ante,  p.  96j,  but  is  to  exercise  its  jurisdiction 
upon  the  proposed  alteration  as  an  original  question.  The  school  com- 
missioner cannot  call  upon  the  supervisor  and  clerk  to  act  with  him,  for 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  latter  depends  upon  an  application  to  them  by 
the  trustees  of  some  district  to  be  affected.  In  order  to  give  them  the 
opportunity  to  make  such  application,  and  that  it  may  be  done  or  the 
option  waived  within  a  reasonable  time,  the  school  commissioner,  before 


190  OF  THE  FORMATION  AND 

making  any  alteration,  should  serve  upon  one  or  more  trustees  of  each 
district  to  be  affected  thereby  a  written  notice,  specifically  describing 
such  alteration,  in  substantially  the  following  form  : 

To  the  trustees  of  District  No.         ,  in  the  town  of  : 

Take  notice,  that  I  intend  on  the         day  of  next,  at 

(specifying  a  convenient  place,  and  a  time  sufficiently  remote  to  enable 
the  trustees  to  make  application  to  the  supervisor  and  clerk,  and  for  the 
latter  to  be  prepared  for  the  meeting),  to  make  an  order  for  the  altera- 
tion of  District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  ,  so  that  its  boundaries 
shall  thereafter  be  as  follows,  viz :  ( Here  specify  the  proposed  boun- 
daries of  the  district,  as  altered,  in  the  manner  recommended  under 
No.  73). 

You  are  therefore  requested  to  meet  without  delay  and  to  adopt  a 
resolution  consenting  to  the  above  proposed  alteration,  in  which  case 
you  will  please  furnish  me,  at  the  time  and  place  above  mentioned,  with 
a  copy  thereof,  certified  under  the  hands  of  a  majority  of  you,  or  to 
adopt  a  resolution  applying  to  the  supervisor  and  town  clerk  of  the 
town  (or  towns  if  the  district  is  a  joint  one)  of  to  be  associated 

with  me  at  the  time  and  place  above  mentioned  in  determining  upon 
the  propriety  of  such  proposed  alteration.  In  the  latter  case  you  will 
please  transmit  copies  of  such  resolution,  certified  under  the  hands  of  a 
majority  of  you,  to  the  supervisor  and  town  clerk  without  delay,  toge- 
ther with  notice  of  the  time  and  place  above  stated  at  which  such  altera- 
tion will  be  made  by  me  in  case  of  their  non-attendance. 

The  determination  of  the  trustees  to  associate  the  supervisor  and 
clerk,  like  every  other  official  act,  should  result  from  the  resolution  of  a 
majority,  adopted  at  a  meeting  at  which  all  are  present  or  which  the 
absent  one  has  been  duly  notified  to  attend.  No  jurisdiction  is  obtained 
by  the  supervisor  and  clerk  upon  the  application  of  less  than  a  majority. 
(See  Digest,  ante,  p.  88.)  Their  want  of  jurisdiction  vitiates  the  action 
of  a  board  in  which  they  may  assume  to  take  part.  Upon  this  point 
the  language  of  Vice-Chancellor  Sandford  (2  Sand.  Ch.R.,  229)  is  very 
instructive.  Discussing  the  effect  of  certain  proceedings  of  a  church 
council  at  which  a  majority  of  the  trustees  were  present  and  in  which 
they  unanimously  concurred,  but  in  which  the  minister,  elders  and  dea- 
cons also  participated,  he  says :  "  the  trustees  in  this  case  are  by  the 
charter  the  select  class  or  body  which  is  to  exercise  the  corporate  functions. 
In  order  to  exercise  them,  they  must  meet  as  a  board,  so  that  they 
may  hear  each  others  views,  deliberate  and  then  decide.     Their  separate 


ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS.  191 

action,  individually,  without  consultation,  although  a  majority  in  num- 
ber should  agree  upon  a  certain  act,  would  not  be  the  act  of  the  con- 
stituted body  of  men  clothed  with  the  corporate  powers.  Nor  would 
their  action  in  a  meeting  of  the  whole  body  of  corporators,  or  of  another 
and  larger  class  in  which  they  are  but  a  component  part,  be  a  valid 
corporate  act.  In  thus  acting  they  are  not  distinguishable  from  their 
associates,  and  their  action  is  united  With  that  of  others  who  have  no 
proper  or  legal  right  to  join  with  them  in  its  exercise.  All  proper 
responsibility  is  lost.  The  result  may  be  the  same  that  it  would  have 
been  if  they  had  met  separately,  and  it  may  be  different.  In  the  general 
assemblage,  influences  may  be  brought  to  bear  upon  the  trustees  which 
in  their  proper  board  would  be  unheeded ;  and  no  one  can  say  with 
certainty  that  their  vote  in  the  latter  event  would  have  been  the  same." 

If  the  trustees  have  given  the  proper  notice  to  the  supervisor  and 
clerk,  the  school  commissioner  can  at  the  time  and  place  appointed 
proceed  to  act  in  conjunction  with  either  of  them,  in  case  the  other 
omits  to  attend.  It  is  true  that  the  general  rule  is,  when  persons  are 
appointed  by  the  law  to  act  as  special  tribunals  of  a  quasi-judicial  char- 
acter, then  both  parties  are  entitled  to  the  presence  of  all  the  judges, 
and  to  have  the  benefits  of  the  consultation  of  each  with  every  other ; 
all  must  therefore  meet  together  and  consult,  but  then  a  majority  may 
decide.  In  this  case,  however,  though  the  law  authorizes  the  trustees  to 
apply  to  the  supervisor  and  clerk,  it  furnishes  no  means  of  compelling 
their  attendance,  nor  does  it  even  in  express  terms  declare  it  their  duty 
to  attend.  It  is  only  that  one  of  them  who  accepts  and  acts  under  the 
application  of  the  trustees  who  can  be  said  to  be  appointed  or  vested 
with  any  power  in  the  premises.  Indeed,  the  doubt  is  rather  whether 
the  sole  jurisdiction  of  the  school  commissioner  is  divested  unless  both 
the  supervisor  and  clerk  associate  themselves  with  him.  It  is  clear  that 
they  cannot  act  except  in  association  with  him.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  74.) 

If  neither  attend,  the  commissioner  may  proceed  to  act  alone;  for  he 
has  the  general  power,  and  cannot  be  deprived  of  it  by  a  fruitless  appli- 
cation to  the  supervisor  and  clerk,  where  the  latter  decline  or  omit  to  be 
associated  with  him. 

In  the  case  of  joint  districts,  the  supervisors  and  town  clerks  of  all 
the  towns,  parts  of  which  are  included  in  the  district  affected,  have, 
under  the  practice  recognized  by  the  department,  been  associated  with 
the  town  superintendents.  In  this  case,  the  reasoning  in  favor  of 
proceeding,  notwithstanding  the  absence  of  some  of  the  supervisors  or 


192  OF  THE  FORMATION  AND 

clerks,  or  even  of  both  the  supervisor  and  clerk  of  some  of  the  towns, 
is  stronger  than  in  the  case  of  a  whole  district. 

Under  the  adjudications  of  the  department  it  has  been  held  that  each 
town  in  such  case  had  but  one  vote,  so  that  the  vote  of  a  superinten- 
dent from  one  town  counterbalanced  the  concurrent  vote  of  the  super- 
intendent, supervisor  and  clerk  from  another  town.  As  the  school 
commissioner  stands  in  the  place  of  a  town  superintendent  for  each  town 
within  his  jurisdiction,  no  town  can  be  deemed  to  be  unrepresented  in 
consequence  of  the  absence  of  its  clerk  and  supervisor.  The  reasoning, 
however,  which  regarded  the  town  officers  as  representatives  of  their 
respective  towns  is  inapplicable  since  the  substitution  of  the  school 
commissioner  for  town  superintendents,  and  each  member  of  the  board 
must  be  regarded  under  the  existing  law  as  having  equal  weight  in  the 
decision.     In  other  words,  it  depends  upon  the  majority  of  voices. 

The  practice  under  the  section  in  question  has  always  been  difficult 
and  obscure ;  and  the  recent  changes  in  legislation  render  it  so  much 
more  so  that  no  opinion  upon  it  can  be  expressed  without  qualifying 
with  a  doubt  in  respect  to  the  ultimate  decision.  Further  legislation  is 
necessary  if  the  section  shall  be  allowed  to  stand  as  a  part  of  the  law. 
As  an  original  question,  it  would  admit  of  much  doubt  whether  this  sec- 
tion was  in  any  case  applicable  to  a  joint  district. 

No.  75.  Whenever  it  may  become  necessary  or  convenient 
to  form  a  district  out  of  two  or  more  adjoining  towns,  the 
["  school  commissioner  in  respect  to  the  several  towns  within 
his  jurisdiction"]  of  each  of  such  adjoining  towns,  or  the 
major  part  of  them,  may  form,  regulate  and  alter  such 
district.  (  Sec.  44,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to 
No.  65,  ante.) 

The  statute  of  1819  made  it  the  duty  "of  the  commissioners  afore- 
said (of  common  schools),  or  the  major  part  of  them,  from  each  of  such 
adjoining  towns,  to  form  such  district,  and  to  alter  and  regulate  the 
same."  Under  this  statute  it  was  very  properly  decided  by  Supt.  Flagg, 
{Common  School  Dec,  p.  23)  that  "no  district  can  be  formed  or  altered 
without  the  assent  of  two  at  least  of  the  commissioners  of  the  town  in 
which  the  district  is  situated,"  and  that  "  the  law  does  not  authorize  the 
question  to  be  settled  by  a  joint  ballot  of  the  commissioners  of  two  or 
more  towns."  This  decision  was  followed,  after  the  revision  of  1830, 
apparently  in  consequence  of  overlooking  the  fact  that  the  Revised 
Statutes  changed  the   language  of  the  section  by  substituting    "  the 


ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS.  193 

commissioners  of  each  of  the  adjoining  towns,  or  the  major  part  of  them," 
which  was  held  by  Supt.  Spencer,  himself  one  of  the  revisors,  to  mean 
a  major  part  of  the  board,  instead  of  "  the  commissioners  or  the  major 
part  of  them  from  each  of  such  adjoining  towns."  When  town  super- 
intendents were  substituted  for  the  town  commissioners  of  common 
schools,  it  was  held  by  those  who  followed  the  decision  of  Supt.  Flagg 
that  the  assent  of  the  superintendent  of  every  town  including  any  part 
of  a  joint  district  was  necessary  to  its  alteration.  It  is  believed  that 
the  construction  adopted  by  Supt.  Spencer  was  the  correct  one,  and 
that  where  the  alteration  of  a  joint  district  requires  the  action  of  a 
board  composed  of  three  or  more  school  commissioners,  unanimity  is 
not  required,  but  a  majority  may  decide. 

No.  76.  No  alteration  of  any  school  district,  made  without 
the  consent  of  the  trustees  thereof,  shall  take  effect  until  three 
months  after  notice,  in  writing,  shall  be  given  by  the  [school 
commissioner]  to  some  one  or  more  of  such  trustees ;  nor 
shall  any  alteration  or  regulation  of  an  organized  school 
district  be  made  to  take  effect  between  the  first  day  of 
December  in  any  one  year,  and  the  first  day  of  May  following. 
(Sec.  45,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  65.) 

In  the  case  of  Williams  v.  Larkin  (3  Denio  114),  it  was  held  by  the 
supreme  court,  where  an  alteration  of  school  districts  made  by  the 
proper  officers  affected  three  districts,  and  the  trustees  of  two  of  the 
districts  consented  to  the  alteration,  but  the  trustees  of  the  other  district 
did  not  consent,  that  the  alteration  took  effect  immediately  as  to  those 
districts  whose  trustees  consented.  In  that  case  a  part  of  District  No. 
14  was  annexed  to  No.  3  with  the  consent  of  the  trustees  of  both 
districts;  the  residue  of  No.  14  was  annexed  to  No.  13  without  the 
consent  of  the  trustees  of  the  latter.  Judge  Bronson,  delivering  the 
opinion  of  the  court,  says :  "Although  both  alterations  were  made  at 
the  same  time,  they  were  not  in  their  nature  inseparable  acts,  and  I  see 
no  reason  why  they  might  not  take  effect  at  different  periods."  It  is 
obvious  that  alterations  may  be  so  connected  and  dependent  upon  each 
other  as  to  render  the  principle  of  this  case  inapplicable.  For  example, 
so  much  of  the  order  as  annulled  District  No.  14  could  not  take  effect 
until  the  expiration  of  three  months,  notwithstanding  its  trustees 
consented,  because  it  was  dependent  upon  the  annexation  of  so  much 
of  said  district  as  remained  to  No.  13.  No.  14  was  a  district  lying 
wholly   within  one  town.     According  to  the  opinion  of  Supt.  Spencer 

[Code.]  25 


194  OF  THF  FORMATION  AND 

(Digest,  ante,  p.  8),  an  order  for  the  dissolution  of  a  joint  district  might 
he  valid,  although  the  annexation  of  its  parts  to  other  districts  might  be 
void ;  and  consequently  its  dissolution  might  take  effect  immediately, 
though  the  annexation  of  its  parts  to  other  districts  might  be  suspended 
for  three  months. 

While  the  alteration  is  inchoate  it  is  wholly  inoperative  upon  the 
rights  of  any  person.  Thus,  where  an  order  was  made  to  annex  terri- 
tory to  an  existing  district  without  the  consent  of  the  trustees  of  the  latter, 
it  was  held  that,  before  the  expiration  of  the  three  months  after  notice, 
the  same  territory  might  be  annexed  to  a  third  district  without  the 
consent  of  the  trustees  who  had  refused  the  annexation  first  proposed ; 
but  that  the  assent  of  the  district  from  whicli  it  was  taken  by  the  first 
order  was  requisite.  (Common  School  Dec,  p.  65.)  So,  residents  upon 
the  territory  to  be  transferred  continue  to  be  legal  voters,  and  are 
entitled  to  notice  of  all  district  meetings  held  between  the  making  of 
the  order  and  the  time  it  takes  effect  (see  Digest,  ante,  p.  86),  and 
must  be  assessed  on  any  tax  list  made  out  in  the  mean  time. 

No.  77.  If  the  [school  commissioner  having  jurisdiction] 
in  any  town  shall  require,  by  notice  in  writing,  the  attendance 
of  the  [school  commissioner]  of  any  other  town  or  towns,  at 
a  joint  meeting  for  the  purpose  of  altering  a  school  district 
formed  from  their  respective  towns,  and  a  major  part  of  the 
[school  commissioners]  notified  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to 
attend,  the  [school  commissioners]  attending,  by  a  majority 
of  votes,  may  call  a  special  district  meeting  of  such  district, 
for  the  purpose  of  deciding  on  such  proposed  alteration  ;  and 
the  decision  of  such  meeting  shall  be  as  valid  as  if  made  by 
the  [school  commissioners]  of  all  the  towns  interested,  but 
shall  extend  no  further  than  to  dissolve  the  district  formed 
from  such  towns.  (Sec.  46,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in 
conformity  to  No.  65.) 

This  section  can  become  operative  only  in  the  rare  case  where  three 
or  more  commissioners  are  requisite  for  the  alteration,  as  it  is  only  in 
such  case  that  the  major  part  can  neglect  to  attend.  The  provision 
conveys  a  strong  implication  that,  if  a  majority  do  attend,  the  board  is 
competent  to  act  as  if  all  were  present.  If  but  one  attends,  and  two  or 
more  absent  themselves,  it  is  to  be  inferred  (though  not  without  doubt) 
that  he  may  call  a  district  meeting. 


ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS.  195 

The  obscurity  arises  from  the  fact  that  the  original  section,  enacted 
in  1822,  and  adopted  in  the  revision  of  1830,  provided  for  the  meeting 
of  town  boards,  cacli  composed  of  three  commissioners ;  this  was  changed 
by  simply  substituting  the  words  "town  superintendents"  for  commis- 
sioners. As  each  superintendent  succeeded  to  the  authority  of  the 
board  of  commissioners  of  his  town,  it  is  fairly  to  be  argued  that  he 
possessed,  and  that  a  school  commissioner  now  possesses,  the  power  of 
calling  a  meeting,  notwithstanding  the  incongruity  of  the  words  care- 
lessly left  in  the  statute,  "  a  majority  of  votes,"  with  the  action  of  a 
single  person. 

If  the  district  meeting  elects  to  dissolve  the  district  (which  is  the 
extent  of  its  power),  the  several  parts  revert  to  the  towns  in  which  they 
are  respectively  included,  and  become  subject  to  regulation  by  the  school 
commissioner  having  jurisdiction  therein.  (See  case  of  JVewslead  and 
Ciarence,  Digest,  ante,  p.  8.) 

No.  78.  When  two  or  more  districts  shall  be  consolidated 
into  one,  the  new  district  shall  succeed  to  all  the  rights 
of  property  possessed  by  the  districts  of  which  it  shall  be 
composed ;  and  when  a  district  is  annulled  and  portions 
thereof  are  annexed  to  other  districts,  the  property  of  the 
district  so  annulled  shall  be  sold  by  the  [school  commis- 
sioner] of  the  town  in  which  the  school-house  is  located, 
at  public  auction,  to  the  highest  bidder  therefor,  after  at 
least  five  days'  public  notice  by  notices  posted  in  three  or 
more  public  places  in  said  town,  one  of  which  shall  be 
within  the  district  so  annulled,  and  the  proceeds  of  such 
sale  shall  be  first  applied,  so  far  as  requisite,  to  the  payment 
of  any  just  debts  due  from  the  district  so  annulled,  and  the 
residue  thereof  shall  be  apportioned  among  the  taxable  in- 
habitants of  the  district  so  annulled,  in  the  ratio  of  their 
several  assessments  upon  the  last  corrected  assessment  roll  of 
the  town  or  towns  within  which  such  district  is  located. 
( Sec.  50,  chap.  480  of  1847,  as  amended  by  %  2,  chap.  382  of 
1849,  and  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  65. ) 

When  two  districts  are  consolidated,  the  public  money  which  either 
may  have  in  the  hands  of  the  supervisor,  unexpended,  becomes  applica- 
ble to  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  and  to  the  library  of  the  consoli- 
dated district,  without  any  distinction  between  the  inhabitants  or  pupils 
of  the  former  districts.  If  there  is  any  money  due  to  a  teacher  of  either 
district,  it  should  be  drawn  before  the  consolidation  takes  effect,  or  so 


196  OF  THE  FORMATION  AND 

much  of  it  as  is  applicable  to  the  payment  of  wages  during  the  term  in 
which  they  were  earned. 

A  district  is  annulled  only  when  all  its  parts  are  annexed  to  other 
districts,  so  that  nothing  of  the  original  district  remains.  If  any  of  it 
remains  as  a  distinct  district,  although  designated  by  a  new  name  and 
number,  it  is  not  a  case  of  annulling. 

In  respect  to  the  property  to  be  sold  :  Property  is  defined  in  the  Code 
of  Procedure  as  including  lands,  tenements  and  hereditaments,  money, 
goods,  chattels,  things  in  action  and  evidences  of  debt.  The  only  point 
upon  which  much  question  is  likely  to  arise  regards  the  library  of  the 
annulled  district.  A  portion  of  the  books  may  have  been  purchased 
with  money  voted  by  the  district  and  raised  by  tax  upon  the  district. 
So  far  as  these  are  concerned,  they  undoubtedly  belong  to  the  district 
and  may  be  sold  when  it  is  annulled.  In  respect  to  those  which  have 
been  purchased  by  the  library  money  apportioned  from  the  income  of 
the  United  States  deposit  fund,  the  case  is  different.  The  money  of  the 
state  was  appropriated  to  the  support  of  common  schools  by  furnishing  a 
library,  and  there  is  nothing  to  imply  an  intention  that  it  should  ever 
be  diverted  from  its  public  purpose  by  becoming  private  property. 
The  trustees  of  the  district  are  made  trustees  of  the  library,  but  the 
property  in  it,  it  is  declared,  "  shall  be  deemed  to  be  vested  in  such  trus- 
tees, so  as  to  enable  them  to  maintain  any  action  relative  to  the  same." 
The  legislature  seem  to  have  designed  hereby  to  confer  only  a  qualified 
property,  for  a  specific  purpose,  retaining  the  general  property  in  the 
people  of  the  State  of  New- York,  precisely  as  the  property  of  the 
library  of  the  court  of  appeals,  the  attorney  general,  &c,  is  held. 

It  is  believed,  therefore,  that  the  books,  so  far  as  they  have  been  pur- 
chased from  the  funds  of  the  state,  should  be  distributed  precisely  as  the 
money  itself  would  be  if  it  came  to  the  hands  of  the  commissioner  for 
distribution  on  the  day  of  the  annulling  of  the  district ;  that  is,  should 
be  assigned  to  the  respective  districts  to  which  parts  are  annexed,  in 
proportion  to  the  number  of  children  between  four  and  twenty-one 
resident  in  such  parts,  according  to  the  last  report  of  the  trustees. 

It  may  happen  in  the  case  of  a  joint  district  that  parts  of  it  are 
within  the  jurisdiction  of  two  school  commissioners,  and  a  school-house 
be  situated  in  each  of  those  parts.  In  such  case,  to  avoid  all  question, 
both  commissioners  should  unite  in  the  sale  of  all  the  property  and  in 
executing  the  necessary  bills  of  sale  and  deeds  of  the  real  estate. 

The  power  to  sell  authorizes  a  sale  only  for  ready  money.  The  com- 
missioner therefore  should  require  cash  payment,  and  should  make  and 


ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS.  197 

proclaim  it  as  a  condition  of  the  sale  that  unless  full  payment  he  made 
within  a  limited  number  of  hours  the  property  may  be  exposed  without 
further  notice,  and  that  any  loss  upon  such  second  sale  shall  be  borne  by 
the  bidder  not  completing  his  purchase.  This  condition  should  be 
inserted  in  the  posted  notices. 

No.  65,  ante,  imposes  upon  the  commissioner  the  disposal  and  appor- 
tionment of  the  moneys  arising  from  the  sale,  but  proceeds:  "and  he 
shall  pay  over  the  said  moneys  to  the  supervisors,  to  be  by  them  paid  to 
the  districts  or  parts  of  districts  which  may  be  entitled  to  receive  the 
same."  To  satisfy  the  terms  of  the  original  section  and  the  provisions 
above  cited  from  No.  65,  it  would  seem  to  be  requisite  that  the  commis- 
sioner should  ascertain  the  just  debts  due  from  the  district  annulled,  and 
make  the  apportionment  of  the  residue  of  the  proceeds  of  the  sale 
among  the  taxable  inhabitants,  leaving  the  money  in  the  hands  of  the 
supervisor  for  payment  to  the  creditors  and  inhabitants  of  the  district. 

The  debts  must  be  ascertained  from  the  trustees,  and  the  supervisor 
should  only  pay  them  upon  the  written  order  of  a  majority  of  the  trus- 
tees. If  debts  are  claimed  which  are  not  admitted  by  the  trustees,  the 
money  should  be  retained  until  any  legal  proceeding  instituted  for  their 
collection  is  determined. 

The  last  corrected  assessment  roll  is  that  which  was  delivered  by  the 
assessors  to  the  supervisor  to  be  laid  before  the  board  of  supervisors. 
If  in  the  equalization  by  the  board  of  supervisors  the  valuation  of  real 
estate  has  been  changed,  the  roll  as  thus  varied  by  them  is  to  be  fol- 
lowed in  distributing  the  money.  But  the  completion  of  a  new  roll  by 
the  assessors,  and  its  delivery  to  the  supervisor,  supercedes  the  roll  of  the 
preceding  year,  although  the  latter  has  been  and  the  former  has  not 
been  passed  upon  by  the  board  of  supervisors.  ( 7  Wend.,  89 ;  and  see 
Digest,  ante,  p.  104.) 

In  a  joint  district,  where  the  proportion  of  taxes  to  be  assessed  upon 
the  parts  of  such  districts  lying  in  different  towns  have  been  established 
by  the  supervisors,  of  such  towns,  under  sec.  72,  chap.  480  of  1847,  post, 
No.-  129,  the  proceeds  of  the  sale  are  to  be  divided  between  the  parts 
of  the  districts  in  the  proportion  thus  established,  and  the  shares  of  such 
parts  then  apportioned  to  their  respective  inhabitants  on  the  last  cor- 
rected assessment  roll  of  the  town  in  which  each  part  lies. 

No.  79.  When  there  shall  be  any  moneys  in  the  hands  of 
the  officers  of  a  district  that  is  or  may  be  annulled,  or  belong- 
ing to  such  district,  the  [supervisor]  of  the  town  may  demand, 


198  OF  THE  FORMATION  AND 

sue  for  and  recover  the  same,  in  his  name  of  office,  and  [after 
deducting  his  costs  and  expenses  shall  report  the  balance  in 
his  hands  to  the  commissioner,  who]  shall  apportion  the  same 
equitably  between  the  districts  to  which  the  several  portions 
of  such  aim ul led  district  may  have  been  annexed,  to  be  held 
and  enjoyed  as  district  property.  (Sec.  52,  chap,  480  of  1847, 
modified  in  conformity  to  No.  53.) 

The  collector  and  trustees  are  the  only  officers  of  a  district  in  whose 
hands  there  can  be  legitimately  any  money ;  such  money  may  be  the 
proceeds  of  a  tax  collected  but  not  expended.  In  such  case,  the  equita- 
ble mode  of  distribution  would  be  to  apportion  it  to  the  districts  accord- 
ing to  the  amount  which  the  taxable  inhabitants  and  property  set  off  to 
each  have  contributed  thereto ;  the  same  rule  would  hold  in  regard  to 
the  proceeds  of  the  sale  of  school-houses  or  other  property  acquired  by 
taxation. 

In  case,  however,  the  money  is  applicable  to  the  payment  of  the 
current  expenses  of  schools,  such  as  the  share  of  a  town  fund,  the 
income  of  a  school  lot  or  the  districts'  proportion  of  fines  for  gambling, 
under  chap.  504  of  1851,  the  equitable  rule  of  apportionment  is  to 
assign  it  to  the  districts  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  pupils  resident 
in  the  parts  annexed  to  them  respectively. 

In  case  it  becomes  necessary  to  bring  an  action  against  the  officers 
of  a  joint  district,  the  supervisors  of  all  the  towns  of  which  it  forms  a 
part  must  join  as  plaintiffs  in  the  suit. 

It  may  be  doubted  whether  the  supervisor  is  authorized  to  maintain  an 
action  against  any  other  person  than  an  officer  of  a  district  for  moneys 
belonging  to  it;  the  statute,  giving  him  the  power  to  sue,  confining  it  to 
penalties  and  forfeitures,  and  to  defaults  and  omissions  by  town  and 
district  officers ;  the  trustees  should  in  such  case  bring  the  action  before 
the  order  annulling  their  district  takes  effect. 

No.  80.  Whenever  a  school  district  shall  be  dissolved,  by 
consolidation  or  otherwise,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees 
of  such  district  to  make  out  all  the  necessary  rate  bills  and 
tax  lists,  and  issue  their  warrants  according  to  law  for  the 
collection  of  all  such  sums  of  money  as  shall  be  necessary  to 
discharge  all  legal  liabilities  of  such  district  so  dissolved  or 
consolidated,  and  to  call  special  meetings  of  the  legal  voters 
of  such  district,  if  it  be  necessary  to  raise  money  by  tax,  to 
discharge  such  demands  ;  and  the  collector  to  whom  any  such 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS,  <fcc.  199 

rate  bill  or  tax  list  and  warrant  shall  be  delivered  for  collection, 
shall  have  power  to  execute  the  same  in  the  same  manner  and 
with  like  authority  as  though  such  district  had  not  been 
dissolved  or  consolidated.     (Sec.  53,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

Though  the  statute  contains  no  limitation  of  the  time  within  which 
the  trustees  of  a  dissolved  or  consolidated  district  are  required  to  dis- 
charge their  duties  under  this  section,  there  can  be  no  valid  reason  for 
any  longer  delay  than  may  be  essential  to  ascertain  its  outstanding 
liabilities.  The  pendency  of  litigation,  in  respect  to  some  of  them,  may 
put  it  out  of  the  power  of  the  trustees  to  act  immediately,  and  their 
powers  doubtless  continue  so  long  as  any  legal  liability  subsists ;  the 
existence  of  the  district  is  maintained  for  this  special  purpose,  and  its 
last  officers  hold  over  until  it  is  accomplished.  In  case  of  the  removal, 
death  or  other  inability  of  the  clerk  or  collector,  it  is  probably  within 
the  power  of  the  trustees  to  fill  the  vacancy  by  appointment.  The 
difficulties  which  may  arise  in  filling  such  vacancies,  and  the  impossi- 
bility of  supplying  a  vacancy  among  the  trustees,  must  admonish  the 
iatter  of  the  serious  importance  to  themselves  of  settling  the  affairs  of 
the  district  with  the  greatest  possible  dispatch. 


OF  THE  POWERS  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICT  INHABITANTS, 
AND  OF  THE  CHOICE,  DUTIES  AND  POWERS  OF  SCHOOL 
DISTRICT  OFFICERS. 

No.  81.  Whenever  any  school  district  shall  be  formed  in 
any  town,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  ["  school  commissioner, 
in  respect  to  the  several  towns  within  his  jurisdiction,"] 
within  twenty  days  thereafter,  to  prepare  a  notice,  in  wTriting, 
describing  such  district,  and  appointing  a  time  and  place  for 
the  first  district  meeting,  and  to  deliver  such  notice  to  a 
taxable  inhabitant  of  the  district.  (Sec.  54,  chap.  480  of  1847, 
mod/fed  in  conformity  to  No.  65.) 

Where  two  or  more  districts  are  consolidated,  the  united  territory 
forms  a  new  district.  It  is  necessary  to  elect  new  trustees  and  other 
district  officers,  and  the  notice  provided  by  this  section  should,  therefore, 
be  given  by  the  commissioner.  The  meeting  for  organization  cannot 
be  held  until  the  district  "  shall  be  formed,"  that  is,  not  until  the  order 
for  its  formation  shall  have  taken  effect  by  the  consent  of  trustees,  the 


200  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS 

expiration  of  three  months'  notice  or  the  decision  of  an  appeal,  if  one 
has  been  brought. 

The  notice  is  to  describe  the  district  by  metes  and  bounds,  so  that 
the  inhabitant  to  whom  it  is  delivered  may  know,  without  recourse  to 
any  other  document,  over  what  territory  he  is  to  search  for  inhabitants. 
It  may  be  in  the  following  form  : 

To  ,  a  taxable  inhabitant  of  District  No.  ,  in  the 

town  of  : 

Whereas,  By  an  order  of  the  school  commissioner  for  the 
assembly  district  (or  section,  where  a  county  forming  but  one  assembly 
district  is  divided)   of  the  county  of  ,  which   order  is  dated 

the  day  of  ,  and  took  effect  on  that  day  (or  will  take 

effect  on  the  day  of  next,  specifying  the  day,  which 

must  precede  the  day  of  meeting),  a  school  district  is  formed,  num- 
bered No.  ,  and  bounded  and  described  as  follows,  viz :  Begining 
(pursuing  the  description  as  in  the  note  to  No.  13.) 

You  are  hereby  required  to  notify  every  male  person  of  full  age, 
residing  in  the  territory  above  described  and  entitled  to  hold  lands 
within  this  state,  who  owns  or  hires  real  property  subject  to  taxation  for 
school  purposes,  and  every  resident  of  such  territory  authorized  to  vote 
at  town  meetings  of  the  town  of  ,  (in  the  case  of  a  joint  district, 

say,  either  of  the  towns  of  or  )  and  who  has 

paid  any  rate  bill  for  teachers'  wages  in  such  territory  within  one  year 
preceding  the  day  of  (the  date  of  the  meeting,  not  of  the 

notice),  or  who  owns  any  personal  property,  liable  to  be  taxed  for  school 
purposes  in  such  territory,  exceeding  fifty  dollars  in  value  exclusive  of  such 
as  is  exempt  from  execution,  that  the  first  district  meeting  of  said  district 
is  hereby  appointed  to  be  held  at  the  house  of  ,  at  six  o'clock 

in  the  afternoon  of  the  day  of  next,  for  the  purpose  of 

electing  a  district  clerk,  three  trustees,  a  district  collector  and  a  librarian; 
of  designating  sites  for  two  or  more  school-houses,  to  which  I  hereby 
consent;  and  of  voting  such  taxes  to  purchase  or  lease  such  sites,  to  hire, 
build  or  purchase  such  school-houses,  to  keep  in  repair  and  furnish  the 
same  with  necessary  fuel  and  appendages,  for  the  purchase  of  a  book 
for  the  purpose  of  recording  the  proceedings  in  the  district,  and,  in  their 
discretion,  an  additional  tax,  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars,  to  purchase 
maps,  globes,  black-boards  and  other  school  apparatus;  to  adjourn  from 
time  to  time  as  occasion  may  require,  and  at  such  meeting  or  any 
adjourned  session  thereof  to  transact  such  other  business  as  the  inhabi- 
tants then  assembled  shall  deem  expedient. 


AND  OF  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  201 

You  arc  required  by  law  to  read  this  notice  in  tlie  hearing  of  each 
inhabitant  qualified  as  above  described,  or,  in  case  of  his  absence  from 
home,  to  leave  a  copy  of  so  much  thereof  as  relates  to  the  time  and 
place  of  such  meeting  at  the  place  of  his  abode,  at  least  six  clays  before 
the  time  of  the  meeting.     Dated  this  day  of 

A.  B., 

School  Commissioner. 

It  is  not  claimed  to  be  absolutely  essential  that  the  notice  should  be 
as  full  as  the  form  above  recommended.  It  is  essential  that  the  time  of 
day  and  the  place  of  meeting  should  be  accurately  specified.  (16  Verm. 
R.,  444.)  It  is  eminently  desirable  that  the  notice  should  be  so  broad 
that  no  person  hearing  it  should  have  the  slightest  ground  for  profess- 
ing to  be  surprised  at  any  business  which  can  by  possibility  be  presented 
at  the  meeting.  This  is  a  rule  that  is  applicable  to  all  notices  for  all 
meetings.  At  the  same  time,  it  is  expedient  that  the  earliest  occasion 
should  be  taken  to  apprise  the  inhabitants  of  the  extent  of  the  powers  of 
a  district  meeting,  and  how  little  they  are  limited  by  the  terms  of  the 
notice.  A  meeting  lawfully  assembled  for  one  object  is  competent  to 
act  upon  others  which  were  not  in  the  contemplation  of  those  who  pro- 
cured it  to  be  called,  and  may  do  almost  anything  except  change  the 
site  of  the  school-house.  It  is  true  that,  though  the  proceedings  of  a 
meeting  may  be  entirely  regular  and  legal,  it  is  within  the  equitable 
powers  of  the  State  Superintendent,  upon  an  appeal,  to  set  them  aside 
where  it  can  be  shown  that  there  was  a  fraudulent  design  to  frame  the 
notice  in  such  a  manner  as  to  conceal  the  real  purpose  for  which  the 
meeting  was  convened.  But  it  is  not  to  be  forgotten  that  the  object  of 
the  notice  is  merely  to  assemble  the  inhabitants  as  the  local  legislature, 
and  that  when  so  assembled  their  powers  are  defined,  not  by  the  notice 
but  by  the  statute.  Indeed  it  would  follow,  from  the  general  principles 
which  have  been  applied  by  the  courts  to  elections  and  other  corporate 
acts,  that  "  if  all  were  present,  though  by  accident  and  without  notice, 
their  acts  would  be  good."  (King  v.  Theoderic,  8  East.,  543 ;  see  also 
11  Wend.,  604.)  In  reference  to  an  annual  meeting,  the  supreme  court 
(6  Hill,  647)  say:  "for  greater  caution,  and  to  give  greater  publicity  to 
the  meeting,  the  statute  directs  the  clerk  to  post  notice  of  it ;  but  that 
is  not  essential  to  its  validity.  The  time  and  place  for  holding  it  may 
always  be  ascertained  by  examining  the  clerk's  records,  and  an  objection 
that  notice  was  not  duly  posted  should  never  be  allowed  to  prevail. 
The  foundation  of  the  meeting  is  the  order  of  a  previous  annual  meet- 

[Code.]  26 


202  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS 

ing,  not  the  posting  of  a  notice  by  the  clerk.     The  former  is  indispensa- 
ble, but  not  the  latter."  (See  pp.  63,  and  74,  ante.) 

No.  82.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  such  inhabitant  to  notify 
every  other  inhabitant  of  the  district,  qualified  to  vote  at  dis- 
trict meetings,  by  reading  the  notice  in  the  healing  of  such 
inhabitant,  or,  in  case  of  his  absence  from  home,  by  leaving  a 
copy  thereof,  or  of  so  much  thereof  as  relates  to  the  time  and 
place  of  such  meeting,  at  the  place  of  his  abode,  at  least  six 
days  before  the  time  of  the  meeting.  ( Sec.  55,  chap.  480  of 
1847.) 

In  computing  statute  time,  the  first  day,  or  the  day  on  which  the  time 
begins  to  run,  is  to  be  excluded.  (10  Barb.,  117.)  The  notice  under 
this  section,  must  be  six  full  days,  exclusive  of  the  day  of  service,  and 
must  therefore  be  given  as  early  as  the  seventh  day  before  the  meeting. 

It  is  always  important  that  the  persons  on  whom  and  the  manner  in 
which  the  notice  has  been  served  should  be  verified  by  proper  evidence, 
which  can  be  preserved.  In  reference  to  a  similar  notice  under  the 
school  law  of  Massachusetts,  the  supreme  court  of  that  state  says:  "When 
the  selectmen  direct  a  warrant  for  calling  a  school  district  meeting  to  a 
proper  person,  he  is  made  a  returning  officer  for  that  occasion.  All 
returning  officers  are  ministerial,  and  are  bound  to  set  forth  in  their 
returns  all  the  acts  done  by  them,  that  the  proper  tribunal  may  judge 
of  their  sufficiency.  They  are  not  competent  to  judge  of  the  legality 
of  a  notice  or  service ;  and  a  return  that  a  precept  had  been  legally 
served,  or  that  the  duty  enjoined  by  a  warrant  had  been  duly  performed, 
would  most  clearly  be  insufficient."  To  obviate  this  objection  the 
inhabitant  who  gives  notice  of  the  meeting  should  frame  his  return  in 
substantially  the  following  manner  : 

Pursuant  to  the  within  notice,  I  have  notified  the  inhabitants  quali- 
fied and  residing  as  therein  described,  at  least  six  days  before  the  time 
of  the  meeting,  in  the  following  manner,  viz :  By  reading  the  notice  in 
their  hearing — John  Doc,  Charles  Davis,  &c.  (naming  them  in  full) ;  by 
leaving  a  copy  of  so  much  of  the  within  as  relates  to  the  time  and  place 
of  meeting  at  their  respective  places  of  abode,  they  being  absent  from 
home — Robert  Kidd,  Henry  Hunter,  &c,  &c.  This  return,  endorsed 
upon  the  notice  and  signed  by  the  inhabitant  making  it,  should  be  pro- 
duced at  the  meeting  and  filed  with  the  records  of  the  district.  It 
constitutes  the  appropriate  evidence  of  the  service  of  notice ;  but  it  is 
not  to  be  inferred  that  in  its  absence  secondary  evidence  may  not  bo 


AND  OF  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  203 

received  to  support  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting,  whose  jurisdiction 
depends  upon  facts  and  not  upon  mere  evidence. 

It  is  proper  to  remark  that  the  notice  should  be  given  to  every 
inhabitant  having  any  pretension  to  a  right  to  vote,  although  the  person 
giving  it  may  deem  his  qualifications  insufficient.  The  giving  him 
notice  determines  nothing  as  to  the  right;  the  omission  of  it  may 
invalidate  the  proceedings  and  subject  the  voters  to  the  inconvenience 
of  a  second  meeting. 

No.  S3.  In  case  such  notice  shall  not  be  given,  or  the  inhabi- 
tants of  a  district  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  assemble  or  form 
a  district  meeting,  when  so  notified ;  or  in  case  any  such  dis- 
trict, having  been  formed  and  organized  in  pursuance  of  such 
notice,  shall  afterwards  be  dissolved,  so  that  no  competent 
autnority  shall  exist  therein  to  call  a  special  district  meeting 
in  the  manner  hereinafter  provided ;  such  notice  shall  be 
renewed  by  the  [school  commissioner]  and  served  in  the  man- 
ner above  prescribed.  (Sec.  56,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in 
conformity  to  No.  65.) 

No  comment  is  necessary  upon  so  much  of  this  section  as  relates  to 
the  repetition  of  the  notice  of  the  first  meeting  for  the  organization 
of  a  district.  The  power  of  the  commissioner  to  call  a  meeting  in  a 
district  after  it  has  been  organized  by  the  election  of  officers  is  restricted, 
so  far  as  this  section  goes,  to  the  case  of  no  competent  authority  exist- 
ing therein  in  consequence  of  its  having  been  dissolved.  It  is  intended 
to  provide  only  for  the  case  of  a  joint  or  consolidated  district  being 
severed.  A  subsequent  section  confers  the  power  of  calling  meetings 
upon  the  commissioner  in  the  cases  therein  mentioned. 

No.  84.  Every  taxable  inhabitant,  to  whom  a  notice  of  a 
district  meeting  shall  have  been  properly  delivered  for  service, 
who  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  serve  the  notice  in  the  manner 
above  in  this  article  enjoined,  shall  for  every  such  offence  for- 
feit the  sum  of  five  dollars.  (Sec.  57,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

It  will  be  observed  that  this  section  imposes  a  penalty  for  every 
refusal  to  serve  a  notice  for  any  district  meeting  properly  delivered  to 
an  inhabitant.  It  is  coextensive  with  the  preceding  section.  A  doubt 
whether  the  commissioner  is  legally  entitled  to  his  office  will  not  excuse 
a  refusal,  if  he  be  an  officer  de  facto,  holding  under  color  of  election 
and  exercising  the  duties  of  the  office.     It  is  not  for  a  ministerial  officer 


204  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS 

to  judge  of  the  validity  of  the  election  of  an  officer  de  facto;  for 
example,  a  district  clerk  should  serve  a  notice  signed  by  persons  recog- 
nized and  acting  as  trustees,  though  he  deems  them  to  have  no  title  to  the 
office  and  regards  the  notice  as  invalid.  (See  7  John.,  552 ;  Digest, 
ante,  pp.  55  and  61.) 

No.  85.  Every  notice  of  a  district  meeting  called  in  pursu- 
ance of  this  act  shall  state  the  purpose  for  which  such  meet- 
ing is  called.  ( Sec.  64,  chap.  480  of  1847. ) 

It  is  of  great  importance  to  the  peace  and  harmony  of  districts  that 
no  inhabitant  should  have  the  slightest  foundation  for  alleging  himself 
to  have  been  misled  as  to  the  object  for  which  a  district  meeting  is 
called.  The  statute  therefore  enjoins  a  distinct  declaration  of  the  pur- 
poses of  those  who  procure  the  call  of  a  meeting  in  the  notice  for  it. 
It  is  a  violation  of  official  duty  on  the  part  of  the  trustees  to  omit  the 
mention  of  any  subject  which  it  is  intended  to  submit  to  the  considera- 
tion of  the  inhabitants.  For  their  own  protection,  and  for  the  purpose 
of  rendering  the  proceedings  safe  against  objection,  they  should  seek  to 
err  by  unnecessary  fullness  and  particularity  in  the  enumeration  of 
the  purposes  of  a  meeting  rather  than  by  an  omission  which  they 
may  deem  of  no  importance.  It  is  true,  indeed,  that  every  inhabitant 
who  absents  himself  from  any  meeting,  voluntarily  assumes  the  risk  that 
those  Avho  assemble  may  act  upon  various  subjects  not  mentioned  in  the 
notices,  and  bind  the  absentees  by  their  determination,  but  this  furnishes 
no  excuse  for  the  officers  whose  duty  it  is  to  give  him  the  amplest 
warning  in  their  power. 

No.  86.  In  each  school  district  an  annual  meeting  shall  be 
held  at  the  time  and  place  previously  appointed ;  and  at  the 
first  district  meeting,  and  at  each  annual  meeting,  the  time 
and  place  of  holding  the  next  annual  meeting  shall  be  fixed. 
(Sec.  65,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

It  has  been  recommended  by  the  State  Superintendent  that  the  first 
Tuesday  of  October  should  be  fixed  by  law  as  a  general  time  for  hold- 
ing the  annual  meetings.  The  fiscal  year  of  the  state  closes  with  the 
30th  of  September,  and  it  is  very  desirable  that  the  annual  accounts  of 
the  districts  should  be  brought  up  to  the  same  time.  Many  districts 
have  voluntarily  conformed  to  this  suggestion,  and  it  is  in  the  power  of 
all  to  do  so  by  adjourning  their  annual  meeting  to  that  day.  (See 
Digest,  ante,  p.  3.)     It  is  necessary,  however,  as  the  law  now  stands,  that 


AND  OF  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  205 

the  resolution  fixing  the  time  and  place  for  the  next,  should  be  repeated 
at  each,  annual  meeting. 

No.  87.  Whenever  the  time  for  holding  annual  meetings  in 
a  district  for  the  election  of  district  officers  shall  pass  without 
such  election  being  held,  a  special  meeting  shall  be  notified  by 
the  clerk  of  such  district  to  choose  such  officers ;  and  if  no 
such  notice  be  given  by  him  or  the  trustees  last  elected  or 
appointed  within  twenty  days  after  such  time  shall  have  passed, 
the  [town  superintendent']  or  town  clerk  may  order  any  inhabi- 
tant of  such  district,  qualified  to  vote  at  district  meetings,  to 
notify  such  meeting  in  the  manner  provided  by  law  in  case 
of  the  formation  of  a  new  district ;  and  the  officers  chosen  at 
any  such  special  meeting  shall  hold  their  office  until  the  time 
for  holding  the  next  annual  meeting.  ( Sec.  66,  chap.  480  of 
1847.) 

The  statute  has  not  substituted  the  school  commissioner  or  supervisor 
in  place  of  the  town  superintendent  for  the  purposes  of  this  section.  It 
is  intended  to  provide  for  the  case  where  an  annual  meeting  has  fallen 
through  (at  least  so  far  as  the  election  of  officers  is  concerned),  the  time 
of  which  was  regularly  fixed  by  the  preceding  annual  meeting,  or  in 
default  of  that  by  the  trustees.  In  that  case  the  clerk  and  other  offi- 
cers hold  over  until  superseded  by  a  new  election,  and  cannot  be  super- 
seded by  an  appointment.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  in  the  first 
instance  to  order  a  meeting  for  that  purpose,  and  for  the  clerk  to  give 
the  notice.  If  the  trustees  fail  to  order  a  meeting,  the  clerk  should 
himself  appoint  a  time  and  give  the  notice,  and  this  he  should  do 
notwithstanding  the  expiration  of  twenty  days  (the  statute  in  regard  to 
the  time  being  merely  directory),  unless  the  town  clerk  shall  have 
acted  in  the  premises.  The  town  clerk  should  promptly  make  the 
order,  upon  the  application  of  any  inhabitant,  at  the  expiration  of 
twenty  days,  without  waiting  for  the  action  of  the  trustees  or  district 
clerk. 

No.  88.  When  the  clerk  and  all  the  trustees  of  a  school 
district  shall  have  removed  or  otherwise  vacated  their  office, 
and  where  the  records  of  a  district  shall  have  been  destroyed 
or  lost,  or  where  trustees  neglect  or  refuse  to  call  meetings  to 
choose  trustees,  the  superintendent  shall  have  authority  to 
order  such  meetings,  and  the  same  shall  be  notified  in  the 


206  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS 

manner  provided  by  law  in  the  case  of  the  formation  of  new 
districts.  (Sec.  67,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

This  section  is  substantially  a  transcript  of  §  4,  chap.  330  of  1839, 
and  the  superintendent  meant  by  it  is  the  State  Superintendent. 

An  inhabitant  who  neglects  to  serve  a  notice  under  either  of  the  two 
preceding  sections  is  liable  to  a  penalty  of  five  dollars  under  No.  84, 
ante. 

No.  89.  When  in  consequence  of  the  loss  of  the  records  of 
a  school  district,  or  the  omission  to  designate  the  day  for  its 
annual  meeting,  there  shall  be  none  fixed,  or  it  cannot  be 
ascertained,  the  trustees  of  such  district  may  appoint  a  day 
for  holding  the  annual  meeting  of  such  district.  (Sec.  68, 
chap.  480  of  1847.) 

The  direction  of  the  trustees  to  the  clerk  to  give  notice  of  an  annual 
meeting  for  a  particular  day  is  an  appointment  of  that  day.  (Digest, 
ajite,  p.  103.)  It  ought  to  be  in  writing,  subscribed  by  a  majority  of  the 
trustees,  and  should  recite  the  fact  that  no  day  was  designated  at  the 
last  annual  meeting,  or  that  the  same  cannot  be  ascertained.  In  case 
the  records  state  that  a  day  was  designated,  but  the  fact  is  disputed,  the 
trustees  should  obviate  the  objection  by  formally  appointing  the  day 
mentioned  in  the  records,  sufficient  time  in  advance  to  enable  the  clerk 
to  post  a  notice  of  at  least  five  days. 

No.  90.  A  special  meeting  shall  be  held  in  each  district 
whenever  called  by  the  trustees ;  and  the  proceedings  of  no 
district  meeting,  annual  or  special,  shall  be  held  illegal  for  want 
of  a  due  notice  to  all  the  persons  qualified  to  vote  thereat, 
unless  it  shall  appear  that  the  omission  to  give  such  notice 
was  willful  and  fraudulent.     (Sec.  69,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

The  provision  to  cure  the  defect  of  notice  relates  to  the  mode  and 
extent  of  service,  and  not  to  the  insufficiency  of  the  matter  contained 
in  the  notice  itself. 

It  was  intended  for  cases  where  through  accident  or  mistake  the 
proper  legal  notice  has  not  been  given  to  all  who  are  entitled  to  it ;  but 
it  cannot  be  construed  to  extend  to  cases  in  which  no  attempt  is  made 
to  give  the  notice  required  by  law  to  any  of  the  inhabitants.  Where 
the  clerk  of  a  district  undertakes  to  give  a  notice  in  the  manner  provi- 
ded by  the  statute,  and  has  failed,  unintentionally,  to  serve  such  notice 


AND  OF  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  207 

on  all  the  persons  entitled  to  receive  it,  or  where  such  notice  is  imperfectly 
served,  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  will  not  be  void  on  that  account. 
They  may,  however,  be  set  aside  on  appeal,  on  showing  sufficient  cause. 
(Com.  School  Dec,  186,  223;  and  also  Digest,  ante,  p.  86.) 

No.  91.  Whenever  any  district  meeting  shall  be  called  in 
the  manner  prescribed  in  the  preceding  sections  of  this  article, 
it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district,  qualified 
to  vote  at  district  meetings,  to  assemble  together  at  the  time  and 
place  mentioned  in  the  notice.     (Sec.  58,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

The  question  of  residence  is  one  frequently  agitated,  not  only  with 
respect  to  the  right  of  voting  and  of  holding  district  offices,  but  in 
regard  to  the  enumeration  of  pupils.  The  principles  which  govern  its 
determination  have  been  largely  discussed  by  the  courts  in  construing 
the  words  residence,  domicil  and  inhabitancy,  which,  though  not  in  all 
respects  and  for  all  purposes  convertible  terms,  mean  generally  the  same 
thing. 

Inhabitancy  and  residence,  says  Chancellor  Walworth  (8  Wend.,  140), 
"mean  a  fixed  and  permanent  abode  or  dwelling  place  for  the  time 
being,  as  distinguished  from  a  mere  temporary  localitij  of  existence."  To 
acquire  a  domicil  two  things  are  necessary,  the  fact  of  residence  in  a 
place,  and  the  intent  to  make  it  a  home.  To  retain  a  domicil  once 
acquired,  actual  residence  however  is  not  indispensable,  but  it  is  retained 
by  the  mere  intention  not  to  change  it  or  adopt  another,  or  rather  by 
the  absence  of  any  present  intention  of  removing  therefrom.  Nor  is  the 
domicil  affected  by  the  forming  of  an  intention  to  remove,  unless  such 
intention  is  carried  into  effect.  This  results  from  the  rule  that  a  domicil 
once  acquired  remains  until  a  new  one  is  acquired.  In  legal  contem- 
plation, every  person  must  have  a  domicil  somewhere,  and  he  can  only 
have  one  domicil  at  one  and  the  same  time. 

In  determining  the  locality  of  a  man's  existence,  where  he  divides  his 
hours  between  different  buildings,  the  place  of  his  dwelling-house  is 
first  regarded  in  contradistinction  to  any  place  of  business,  trade  or 
occupation.  If  he  has  more  than  one  dwelling-bouse,  that  in  which  he 
sleeps  or  passes  his  nights,  if  it  can  be  distinguished,  will  govern.  If 
the  dwelling-house  is  partly  in  one  town  and  partly  in  another,  the 
occupant  must  be  deemed  to  dwell  in  that  town  in  which  he  habitually 
sleeps,  if  it  can  be  ascertained  (23  Pick.,  178.) 

The  constitution  establishes  the  rule,  by  §  3,  art.,  2,  that  "For  the 
purpose  of  voting,  no  person  shall  be  deemed  to  have   gained  or  lost  a 


208  POWEKS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS 

residence  by  reason  of  his  presence  or  absence  while  employed  in  the 
service  of  the  United  States ;  nor  while  engaged  in  the  navigation  of 
the  waters  of  this  state,  or  of  the  United  States,  or  of  the  high  seas ; 
nor  while  a  student  of  any  seminary  of  learning ;  nor  while  kept  at  any 
alms-house  or  other  asylum  at  public  expense ;  nor  while  confined  in 
any  public  prison." 

The  intention  of  remaining,  requisite  to  constitute  a  resident,  must 
be  independent  of  any  temporary  purpose  of  business,  health  or  plea- 
sure, though  it  does  not  necessarily  exclude  the  idea  of  removing  after 
an  indefinite  time,  or  a  change  of  circumstances.  Once  established  in 
any  place,  the  presumption  of  residence  continues  unless  rebutted,  and 
the  burthen  of  proof  is  upon  a  party  alleging  a  change. 

The  following  is  a  condensed  statement  of  the  rules  given  by  Judge 
Story  ( Conflict  of  Laws,  chap.  3 ) ;  most  of  them  are  stated  and  illus- 
trated by  our  supreme  court  (4  Barb.,  518) : 

1.  The  place  of  birth  of  a  person  is  considered  as  his  domicil,  if  it 
be  at  the  the  time  the  domicil  of  his  parents.  This  is  called  the  domi- 
cil of  nativity.  But  if  his  parents  are  on  a  visit  or  on  a  journey,  the 
home  of  the  parents  will  be  deemed  his  domicil.  An  illegitimate  child 
follows  the  domicil  of  his  mother ; 

2.  The  domicil  of  birth  continues  until  he  has  acquired  a  new  domi- 
cil ; 

3.  A  minor  is  generally  deemed  incapable  of  changing  his  domicil, 
but  if  the  parent  changes  his  domicil  that  of  the  minor  follows  it.  If 
the  father  dies  his  last  domicil  continues  that  of  his  minor  children. 
This  rule  is  subject  to  qualification  if  the  minor  has  been  emancipated 
from  parental  control  or  adopted  into  a  new  family ; 

4.  A  married  woman  follows  the  domicil  of  her  husband; 

5.  A  widow  retains  the  domicil  of  her  deceased  husband  until  she 
acquires  another; 

6.  Prima  facie,  the  place  where  a  person  lives  is  deemed  his  domicil ; 

7.  Every  person  of  full  age  having  a  right  to  change  his  domicil,  if 
he  removes  to  another  place  with  an  intention  of  making  it  his  perma 
nent  residence,  that  immediately  becomes  his  domicil ; 

8.  If  a  person  removes  to  another  place  with  an  intention  of  remain- 
ing there  for  an  indefinite  time,  and  as  a  place  of  present  domicil,  it 
becomes  his  domicil  notwithstanding  he  may  entertain  a  floating  inten- 
tion to  return  at  some  future  period ; 

9.  The  place  where  a  married  man's  family  resides  is  generally 
deemed  his  domicil,  but  not  if  it  be  a  merely  temporary  establishment ; 

10.  If  a  married  man  has  his  family  in  one  place  and  his  business  in 
another,  the  former  is  deemed  his  domicil ; 

11.  If  a  married  man  has  two  places  of  residence  at  different  times 
of  the  year,  that  will  be  esteemed  his  domicil  which  he  himself  selects 


AND  OF  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  209 

or  deems  his  borne,  or  which  appears  to  be  the  centre  of  his  affairs,  or 
where  he  votes  or  exercises  the  rights  and  duties  of  a  citizen ; 

12.  If  a  man  is  unmarried,  that  is  generally  deemed  his  domicil 
where  he  transacts  his  business,  exercises  his  profession  or  assumes  the 
privileges  or  duties  of  a  citizen.  But  this  rule  is  subject  to  qualifica- 
tion ; 

13.  Residence,  to  produce  a  change  of  domicil,  must  be  voluntary, 
not  by  imprisonment,  &c. ; 

14.  Mere  intention  to  remove,  without  the  fact  of  removal,  will  not 
change  the  domicil ;  nor  will  the  fact  of  removal  without  intention. 
They  must  go  together ; 

15.  A  domicil,  once  acquired,  remains  until  a  new  one  is  acquired. 

No.  92.  Every  male  person  of  full  age,  residing  in  any 
school  district  and  entitled  to  hold  lands  in  this  state,  who 
owns  or  hires  real  property  in  such  district  subject  to  taxation 
for  school  purposes,  and  every  resident  of  such  district  autho- 
rized to  vote  at  town  meetings  of  the  town  in  which  such 
district  or  part  of  district  is  situated,  and  who  has  paid  any 
rate  bill  for  teachers'  wages  in  such  district  within  one  year 
preceding,  or  who  owns  any  personal  property  liable  to  be 
taxed  for  school  purposes  in  such  districts  exceeding  $50 
in  value,  exclusive  of  such  as  is  exempt  from  execution, 
and  no  others,  shall  be  entitled  to  vote  at  any  school  district 
meeting  held  in  such  district.  [Sec.  59,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

Cases  elucidating  the  qualifications  of  voters  will  be  found  at  pages  67, 
81  and  90,  ante.  They  must  in  all  cases  be  males,  twenty-one  years  of 
age,  and  residents  of  the  district.  Possessing  these  qualifications,  a  man 
to  be  entitled  to  vote  must  possess  also  one  of  the  following  qualifications, 
and  either  one  is  sufficient : 

1.  He  must  be  entitled  to  hold  lands,  and  therefore,  if  an  alien,  must 
have  complied  with  the  condition  stated  at  page  81,  and  must  also  own 
or  hire  real  property  in  the  district  subject  to  taxation ;  it  matters  not 
how  small  is  the  real  property  or  how  brief  the  term  for  which  it  is 
hired ;  tenancy  from  week  to  week  of  a  shanty  or  a  room  is  sufficient. 
The  real  property  must  be  subject  to  taxation,  and  it  matters  not  that 
the  person  claiming  to  vote  as  the  owner  or  hirer  of  it  is  not  actually 
taxed  for  it  himself,  or  that  the  property  is  not  taxed  to  the  owner  or 
any  other  person.  A  man  of  color  may,  therefore,  be  a  voter  at  a  distinct 
meeting,  who  hires  real  property  of  less  than  $250  in  value,  because  it 
is  subject  to  taxation  as  the  property  of  the  owner  ;  although  the  man 
of  color  cannot  vote  as  the  owner  of  real  property  of  less  than  f  250  in 

[Code.]  27 


210  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS 

value,  because  the  constitution  (§  1,  art.  2)  exempts  him  from  taxation 
unless  he  possesses  a  freehold  estate  of  that  value.  Quere,  however, 
whether  a  man  of  color  who  owns  real  property,  worth  say  $200,  which 
he  rents  to  a  white  man,  so  that  the  latter  is  taxable  as  occupant,  is 
not  entitled  to  vote  at  a  district  meeting. 

2.  Or  must  own  personal  property  liable  to  taxation  exceeding  $50  in 
value,  exclusive  of  such  as  is  exempt,  and  must  be  authorized  to  vote  at 
town  meetings  of  the  town  in  which  the  district,  or  the  part  thereof 
where  he  resides,  is  situated. 

In  Crawford  v.  Wilson,  4  Hill,  504,  the  supreme  court  held  in 
effect  that  in  estimating  the  amount  of  a  voter's  personal  property  a 
debt  due  to  him  from  a  school  district  for  teachers'  wages,  and  from  his 
father  for  services,  might  be  taken  into  account.  No  unnaturalized  alien, 
Indian  or  man  of  color  can  entitle  himself  to  vote  in  virtue  of  his 
possession  of  taxable  personal  property.  His  claim  must  be  tested 
by  the  possession  of  the  right  to  vote  at  town  meeting,  which  requires 
citizenship  (which  excludes  aliens  and  Indians)  for  ten  days,  residence  of 
the  state  for  one  year  next  preceding,  and  of  the  county  for  the  last 
four  months,  and,  in  regard  to  the  man  of  color  who  is  a  citizen,  the 
real  property  qualification  also. 

3.  Or  he  must  be  entitled  to  vote  at  town  meetings,  and  must  have 
paid  a  rate  bill  for  teachers'  wages  within  one  year  preceding.  In  4 
Hill,  516,  above  cited,  it  was  held  that  the  payment  by  the  voter  of  part 
of  a  rate  bill  for  teachers'  wages,  although  included  in  the  sum  assessed 
against  his  father,  comes  within  the  terms  of  the  act. 

This  qualification,  like  the  preceding,  is  inapplicable  to  unnaturalized 
aliens,  Indians  and  men  of  color. 

The  personal  property  exempt  from  execution  is  defined  by  law  as 
follows  :  "  When  owned  by  any  person  being  a  householder  ;  and  such 
articles  thereof  as  are  movable  shall  continue  so  exempt  while  the 
family  of  such  person  or  any  of  them  may  be  removing  from  one  place 
of  residence  to  another. 

"1.  All  spinning  wheels,  weaving  looms,  and  stoves  put  up  or  kept 
for  use  in  any  dwelling-house  ; 

"  2.  The  family  bible,  family  pictures,  and  school  books  used  by  or  in 
the  family  of  such  person ;  and  books  not  exceeding  in  value  fifty 
dollars,  which  are  kept  and  used  as  part  of  the  family  library; 

"3.  A  seat  or  pew  occupied  by  such  person  or  his  family  in  any  house 
or  place  of  public  worship  ; 

"  4.  All  sheep  to  the  number  of  ten,  with  their  fleeces,  and  the  yarn 
or  cloth  manufactured  from  the  same  (though  not  the  owner  of  the  sheep 


AND  OF  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  211 

on  which  grow  the  fleeces  from  which  they  arc  made,  21  Wend.,  69), 
one  cow,  two  swine,  the  necessary  food  for  them  (hut  not  for  a  team, 
5  benio,  119),  all  necessary  pork,  beef,  fish,  flour  and  vegetables  actually 
provided  for  family  use  (although  such  vegetables  may  be  in  the  ground, 
undug  or  not  fully  grown,  25  Wend.,  370),  and  necessary  fuel  for  the 
use  of  the  family  for  sixty  days  ; 

"  5.  All  necessary  wearing  apparel,  beds,  bedsteads  and  bedding  for 
such  person  and  his  family,  arms  and  accoutrements  required  by  law 
to  be  kept  by  such  person,  necessary  cooking  utensils,  one  table,  six 
chairs,  six  knives  and  forks,  six  plates,  six  teacups  and  saucers,  one  sugar 
dish,  one  milk  pot,  one  tea  pot  and  six  spoons,  one  crane  and  its  appen- 
dages, one  pair  of  and-irons  and  a  shovel  and  tongs ; 

"  6.  The  tools  and  implements  of  any  mechanic  necessary  to  the 
carryino;  on  of  his  trade,  not  exceeding  twenty-five  dollars  in  value." 
(Sec.  22,  chap.  6,  art.  2,  tit.  5,  part  3,  Rev.  Stat.) 

It  is  also  provided,  by  chap.  157  of  1842,  that  in  addition  to  the  articles 
before  enumerated,  there  shall  be  exempted  from  levy  and  sale, under 
execution  "  necessary  household  furniture,  and  working  tools,  and  team 
owned  by  any  person  being  a  householder  or  having  a  family  for  which 
he  provides,  to  the  value  of  not  exceeding  $150;  provided  that  such 
exemption  shall  not  extend  to  any  execution  issued  on  a  demand  for 
the  purchase  money  cf  such  furniture,  or  tools,  or  team  or  articles  now 
enumerated  by  law."  * 

*  "  No  replevin  shall  lie  for  any  property  taken  by  virtue  of  any  warrant  for 
the  collection  of  any  tax,  assessment  or  line  in  pursuance  of  any  statute  of  this 
state."  (2R.  S.,p.  522,  (>  4.) 

This  provision  must,  however,  be  subject  to  the  action  of  congress  on  a  subject 
which  by  the  constitution  is  within  its  jurisdiction.  The  constitution  in  express 
terms  gives  to  congress  the  power  "  to  provide  for  organizing,  arming  and  disci- 
plining the  militia." 

By  the  act  of  congress  of  May  8,  1792  (vol.  2,  Laws  of  the  United  States,  293), 
every  citizen  enrolled  in  the  militia  is  required  to  provide  himself  with  the  fol- 
lowing accoutrements,  viz:  "A  good  musket  or  firelock,  a  sufficient  bayonet  and 
belt,  two  spare  flints  and  a  knapsack,  a  pouch  with  a  box  therein,  to  contain  not 
less  than  twenty-four  cartridges  suited  to  the  bore  of  his  musket  or  firelock, 
each  cartridge  to  contain  a  proper  quantity  of  powder  and  ball ;  or  with  a  good 
rifle,  knapsack,  shot  pouch  and  powder  horn,  twenty  balls  suited  to  the  bore  of 
his  rifle,  and  a  quarter  of  a  pound  of  powder;"  and  the  commissioned  officers 
are  required  to  be  armed  with  a  sword,  or  hanger,  or  espontoon ;  and  it  is 
declared  that  every  citizen  so  enrolled  and  providing  himself  with  arms,  ammuni- 
tion and  accoutrements,  required  as  aforesaid,  shall  hold  the  same  exempted  from 
all  suits,  distresses,  executions  or  sales  for  debts,  or  for  the  payment  of  taxes. 

By  the  laws  of  this  state  {chap.  6,  part  3,  title  b,  §  22,  vol.  2,  R.  S.),  the  "  arms 
and  accoutrements  required  by  law  to  be  kept  by  any  person,"  as  well  as  a  variety 
of  other  articles  therein  specified,  are  exempt  from  execution,  but  not  from 
distress  from  taxes.  The  only  exemption,  therefore,  from  the  operation  of  a  col- 
lector's warrant  on  a  tax  list,  arises  under  the  act  of  congress  before  quoted,  and 
this  can  only  be  extended  to  the  arms,  ammunition  and  accoutrements  therein 
specified. 


212  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS 

No.  93.  If  any  person  offering  to  vote  at  any  school  district 
meeting  shall  be  challenged  as  unqualified,  by  any  legal  voter 
in  such  district,  the  chairman  presiding  at  such  meeting  shall 
require  the  person  so  offering  to  make  the  following  declara- 
tion :  "  I  do  declare  and  affirm  that  I  am  an  actual  resident 
of  this  school  district,  and  that  I  am  qualified  to  vote  at  this 
meeting."  And  every  person  making  such  declaration  shall 
be  permitted  to  vote  on  all  questions  proposed  at  such  meet- 
ing, but  if  any  person  shall  refuse  to  make  such  declaration 
his  vote  shall  be  rejected.  {Sec.  60,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

(See  Digest,  p.  61,  ante.)  A  party  knowing  a  person  to  be  unquali- 
fied and  permitting  him  to  vote  without  challenge  will  not  be  allowed 
to  object  to  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting  because  such  unqualified 
person  participated  in  them.  It  has  been  the  practice  of  some  of  the 
State  Superintendents  upon  appeal  to  disregard  the  objection  that 
unqualified  persons  voted,  unless  they  were  challenged,  although  it  did 
not  appear  that  the  fact  of  their  disqualification  was  known  at  the  time 
of  the  meeting.  The  rule  is  well  settled,  that  proceedings  will  not  be 
vitiated  by  illegal  votes  unless  a  different  result  would  have  been  pro- 
duced by  excluding  such  votes.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  99.)  It  lies  upon 
the  party  objecting  to  show  that  fact,  even,  according  to  the  judgment 
of  the  supreme  court,  in  7  Cowen,  153,  if  the  nature  of  the  proceeding 
is  such  as  to  deprive  him  of  the  power,  as  in  the  case  of  a  vote  by  ballot. 
In  the  case  cited  the  court  say :  "  For  aught  that  appears,  the  spurious 
ballots  were  for  the  ticket  which  was  in  the  minority.  To  warrant 
setting  aside  the  election,  it  must  appear  affirmatively  that  the  successful 
ticket  received  a  number  of  improper  votes,  which,  if  rejected,  would 
have  brought  it  down  to  a  minority."  It  is  also  incumbent  upon  the 
appellant  to  state  the  facts  showing  the  lack  of  qualification  in  such 
terms  as  to  necessarily  exclude  every  presumption  that  the  voter  could 
be  qualified  under  either  of  the  three  heads  stated  in  the  note  to  the 
previous  section.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  90.) 

A  challenge  should  be  interposed  at  the  very  first  instance  in  which 
an  unqualified  person  may  offer  to  vote ;  for  it  would  be  very  unjust  to 
permit  a  party  to  avail  himself  of  a  vote  so  long  as  it  should  be  cast  in 
accordance  with  his  views,  and  then  to  object  when  a  difference  mani- 
fested itself  between  himself  and  the  voter. 

If  a  challenge  is  interposed  upon  the  vote  for  chairman,  the  person 
who  made  the  nomination  ordinarily  takes  the  question  upon  it,  and 
should  regard  himself  as  temporary  chairman,  and  require  the  declaration 


AND  OF  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  213 

prescribed  by  the  statute  from  the  challenged  party,  which  should  be 
given  in  the  very  words  of  the  law. 

No.  94.  Every  person  who  shall  willfully  make  a  false 
declaration  of  his  right  to  vote  at  a  district  meeting,  upon 
being  challenged  as  hereinbefore  provided,  shall  be  deemed 
guilty  of  a  misdemeanor,  and  punished  by  imprisonment  in 
the  county  jail  for  a  term  not  exceeding  one  year  nor  less 
than  six  months,  at  the  discretion  of  the  court ;  and  any  per- 
son voting  at  any  school  district  meeting  without  being  quali- 
fied, shall,  on  conviction,  be  subject  to  a  fine  of  ten  dollars,  to 
be  sued  for  and  recovered  by  the  trustees  of  the  district  for 
its  use,  and  with  costs  of  suit,  before  any  justice  of  the  peace. 
(Sec.  61,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

No.  95.  The  inhabitants  so  entitled  to  vote,  when  so  assem- 
bled in  such  district  meeting,  or  when  lawfully  assembled  at 
any  other  district  meeting,  shall  have  power,  by  a  majority 
of  the  votes  of  those  present : 

1.  To  appoint  a  chairman  for  the  time  being ; 

2.  To  adjourn  from  time  to  time,  as  occasion  may  require  ; 

3.  To  choose  a  district  clerk,  three  trustees,  a  district  col- 
lector and  a  librarian  at  their  first  meeting,  and  as  often  as 
such  offices  or  either  of  them  become  vacated  ; 

4.  To  designate  a  site  for  a  district  school-house ; 

5.  To  lay  such  tax  on  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  dis- 
trict as  the  meeting  shall  deem  sufficient  to  purchase  or  lease 
a  suitable  site  for  a  school-house,  and  to  build,  hire  or  pur- 
chase such  school-house,  aud  to  keep  in  repair  and  furnish  the 
same  with  the  necessary  fuel  and  appendages ; 

6.  To  alter,  repeal  and  modify  their  proceedings  from  time 
to  time,  as  occasion  may  require  ; 

7.  To  vote  a  tax  for  the  purchase  of  a  book  for  the  purpose 
of  recording  the  proceedings  in  their  respective  districts  ; 

8.  With  the  consent  of  the  [school  commissioner]  of  the 
town,  to  designate  sites  for  two  or  more  school-houses  for  such 
district,  and  lay  a  tax  on  the  taxable  property  in  such  district 
to  purchase  or  lease  such  sites,  and  to  hire,  build  or  purchase 
such  school-houses,  and  to  keep  in  repair  and  furnish  the  same 
with  necessary  fuel  and  appendages,  and  may  also  in  their 
discretion  lay  a  tax,  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars  in  any  one 
year,  to  purchase  maps,  globes,  black-boards  and  other  school 
apparatus.  (Sec.  62,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 


214  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

In  the  exposition  of  this  very  important  section,  each  of  the  powers 
conferred  by  it  will  be  separately  treated.  It  is  to  be  observed,  that  the 
section  grants  these  powers  to  the  inhabitants  entitled  to  vote,  when 
lawfully  assembled  at  their  first  district  meeting,  or  at  any  other  district 
meeting.  It  is  impossible  in  the  face  of  these  explicit  words  to  confine 
the  exercise  of  these  powers  to  an  annual  meeting,  or  to  limit  them  to 
the  objects  expressed  in  the  notice  under  which  the  meeting  is  called. 
(See  Digest,  ante,  pp.  15,  98,  104.)  This  does  not  conflict  with  the 
doctrine  that  it  is  the  duty  of  trustees,  when  giving  notice  of  every 
meeting,  to  state  the  purpose  for  which  it  is  called.  They  are  bound  to 
inform  the  inhabitants  what  business  they,  or  those  at  whose  instance 
they  give  the  notice,  propose  to  lay  before  the  meeting.  But  their 
neglect  in  this  particular  cannot  deprive  the  inhabitants  of  any  power 
which  the  statute  confers  upon  them.  The  inhabitants  are  the  legisla- 
tive power,  and,  when  lawfully  assembled,  are  entitled  to  consider  and 
act  upon  propositions  affecting  the  interests  of  the  district,  by  whomso- 
ever offered  and  with  however  little  premeditation,  unless  where  speci- 
ally restrained,  as  they  are  in  respect  to  a  change  of  site. 

The  resolutions  of  the  meeting  are  determined  by  a  majority  of  the 
votes  of  those  present  and  voting,  and  do  not  require  the  votes  of  a  majority 
of  all  present  and  not  voting.  Even  if  the  words  of  the  statute  were 
less  explicit  this  would  be  the  rule  at  common  law.  which,  as  stated  by 
Lord  Mansfield  (2  Burr.,  1021),  is:  "Whenever  electors  are  present 
and  do  not  vote  at  all,  they  virtually  acquiesce  in  the  election  made  by 
those  who  do."  In  that  case  twenty-one  electors  were  present,  nine  of 
whom  voted  for  S.  as  town  clerk,  eleven  protested  against  him  without 
voting  for  any  one  else,  and  one  other  said  "he  suspended  doing 
anything."  The  action  of  the  twelve  was  held  to  be  the  same  as  if  they 
had  been  silent;  and  being  present,  but  silent,  exactly  as  if  they  had 
been  absent.  They  must  be  taken  to  assent  to  what  the  others  agree  to 
in  carrying  out  the  purpose  of  the  meeting. 

The  same  doctrine  is  applied  in  a  recent  case  (7  Adolph.  &  Ellis, 
454)  to  other  resolutions  than  those  for  an  election.  The  court  say : 
"  The  principle,  indeed,  may  be  best  illustrated  by  the  analogy  drawn 
from  electoral  meetings ;  but  it  is,  in  truth,  of  a  very  general  nature, 
and  inseparable  from  the  proceedings  of  any  assembly  convened  for 
doing  some  act  necessary  to  be  done  at  that  meeting.  The  majority 
must  do  it ;  otherwise,  however  necessary,  it  will  be  left  undone.  But 
what  majority  ?  The  majority  of  those  who  choose  to  take  a  part  in 
the  proceedings  of  the  assembly.     At  almost  every  meeting  of  commis- 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  215 

sioners  for  executing  public  works  and  imposing  rates  for  tliat  purpose, 
it  is  probable  tliat  the  resolution  is  formed  by  a  small  number  of  those 
who  attend,  on  whom  the  larger  number  are  content  to  rely.  If  it  were 
found  as  a  fact  that  five  had  passed  the  resolution  in  a  room  containing 
twenty,  of  whose  proceedings  the  other  fifteen  were  ignorant,  this  would 
be  the  undoubted  act  of  the  whole  meeting,  if  the  proceedings  had 
been  conducted  regularly  and  no  fraud  were  practiced  to  occasion  the 
ignorance  of  the  fifteen.  But  suppose  the  twenty  were  convened  to  do 
an  act  which  the  law  required  them  to  do  at  that  time,  and  the  only 
open  question  was  as  to  the  mode  of  doing  it ;  a  mode  lawful  in  itself 
is  regularly  submitted,  whereupon  fifteen  declare  that  though  the  law 
has  imposed  the  duty  on  them  they  entertain  so  strong  an  objection,  on 
grounds  of  conscience,  to  the  law,  that  they  refuse  entirely  to  concur  in 
obeying  it.  What  must  be  the  consequence  ?  Must  the  law  be  set  at 
nought  and  its  requirements  be  disregarded,  or  must  not  those  who 
stand  aloof  be  considered  as  refusing  to  assist  in  the  execution  of  their 
•duty  and  leaving  it  to  be  done  by  the  minority,  which  is  desirous  of 
doing  what  is  right  ?" 

We  proceed  to  consider  the  several  powers  of  a  district  meeting  in 
the  order  of  the  statute. 

1.  To  appoint  a  chairman  for  the  time  being:  As  the  statute  directs 
the  appointment  of  a  chairman,  he  should  be  so  entitled,  and  not  moder- 
ator or  president.  The  acceptance  of  the  position  does  not  deprive  the 
chairman  of  the  right  to  vote  upon  any  question  submitted  to  the 
meeting.  [See  Digest,  ante,  p.  68.)  He  may  either  give  a  casting  vote 
upon  a  tie,  or,  when  there  is  a  majorit3»of  one  in  favor  of  any  resolution, 
may  vote  with  the  minority,  and  thus  make  a  tie  vote,  which  defeats  the 
resolution  ;  or  without  waiting  for  this  result  may,  upon  the  call  of  yeas 
and  nays  by  the  clerk,  vote  when  his  name  is  reached.  He  can, 
however,  cast  but  one  vote  upon  the  question. 

It  is  the  chairman's  duty  to  put  every  question  to  vote  which  is  made 
and  seconded.  [Ante,  p.  42.)  If  he  deems  the  motion  out  of  order,  he 
should  so  declare ;  if  the  party  making  the  motion  deems  his  decision 
upon  the  point  of  order  erroneous,  it  his  right  to  appeal  to  the  meeting 
from  such  decision,  and,  if  the  appeal  is  seconded,  it  is  the  duty  of  the 
chairman  to  put  the  question :  "  Shall  the  decision  of  the  chair  be 
sustained  ?  "  If  upon  such  appeal  the  meeting  vote  against  the  decision 
of  the  chair,  it  is  the  chairman's  dut}r  to  put  the  original  question ;  a 
refusal  to  do  so  is  disorderly,  and  it  is  in  such  case  in  the  power  of  the 
meeting  to  select  a  new  chairman  who  will  conform  to  its  decision.     The 


216  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

motion  for  this  purpose  may,  from  the  necessity  of  the  case,  be  put  by  the 
clerk.  There  being  no  code  of  rules  to  regulate  the  proceedings  of  district 
meetings,  that  must  be  held  to  be  in  order  to  which  a  majority  consents. 
The  office  of  the  chairman  is  to  facilitate  the  ascertaining  of  the  wishes  of 
the  majority.     If  their  determination  be  illegal,  the  remedy  is  by  appeal. 

2.  To  adjourn  from  time  to  time,  as  occasion  may  require  :  A  motion 
for  adjournment  takes  precedence  of  all  others,  for  otherwise  the  meeting 
might  be  kept  in  session  against  its  will,  and  for  an  indefinite  period.  A 
majority  who  were  desirous  of  adjourning  could  not  withdraw  without 
leaving  all  the  powers  of  the  meeting  in  the  possession  of  the  minority. 
(See  Digest,  ante,  p.  20.)  And  if  any  other  motion  were  permitted  to 
take  precedence,  it  might  be  in  the  power  of  a  factious  minority,  by 
renewing  such  motions,  to  wear  out  the  physical  endurance  of  the 
majority.  This  motion,  however,  cannot  be  received  after  another 
question  is  actually  put,  and  while  the  meeting  is  engaged  in  voting 
upon  it ;  but  in  such  case  the  vote  must  be  concluded  and  the  result 
announced  by  the  chairman.  If  a  question  be  put  for  adjournment,  it» 
is  no  adjournment  until  the  chairman  pronounces  it. 

An  adjournment  is  either  without  day  or  to  a  specified  time.  In  the 
former  case  all  propositions  upon  which  the  question  has  not  been  taken 
are  discontinued,  and  are  not  taken  up  at  another  meeting  except  upon  a 
fresh  proposition.  In  the  latter  case  it  is  but  a  continuance  of  the  session; 
all  matters  depending  remain  in  the  same  situation  in  which  they  were 
left,  and  when  the  meeting  again  convenes  are  resumed  at  the  precise 
point  at  which  they  were  left.  The  statute,  however,  regards  an  adjourn- 
ment for  more  than  one  month  as  constituting  a  new  meeting,  so  far  as 
to  require  the  posting  of  written  notices  of  the  time  and  place  thereof 
in  four  at  least  of  the  most  public  places  of  the  district,  at  least  five 
days  before  the  time  appointed.  If  a  special  meeting  be  properly 
called,  or  the  annual  meeting  occur  in  the  mean  time,  its  powers  in 
reference  to  any  subject  are  not  impaired  by  the  fact  that  a  previous 
meeting,  having  such  subject  under  consideration,  stands  adjourned  to 
a  subsequent  day.  (See  Digest,  ante,  pp.  83,  98,  and  6  Metcalf,  Mass. 
Rep.,  509.) 

3.  To  choose  a  district  clerk,  three  trustees,  a  district  collector,  and 
a  librarian,  at  their  first  meeting,  and  as  often  as  si  ch  offices  or  either 
of  them  become  vacated  :  The  office  of  clerk,  collector  or  librarian  is 
incompatible  with  that  of  trustee.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  7.)  The  statute 
(sec.  6,  chap.  480  of  1847)  provides  that  "no  town  superintendent  of  a 
town  shall  hold  the  office  of  trustee  of  a  school  district,  nor  shall  a  per- 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  217 

son  chosen  a  trustee  bold  the  office  of  district  clerk,  and  no  town 
superintendent  shall  hold  the  office  of  either  supervisor  or  town  clerk." 
As  all  the  duties  which  rendered  the  office  of  town  superintendent 
inconsistent  with  that  of  trustee  are  now  devolved  upon  the  school 
commissioner,  the  latter,  under  the  policy  of  the  law,  is  inelegible  to 
the  office  of  trustee.  In  reference  to  votes  cast  for  disqualified  candi- 
dates, the  law  is  thus  stated  in  1  Adolph  d-  Ellis  437  :  "The  result  of 
the  decisions  appears  to  be  this  :  Where  the  majority  of  electors  vote 
for  a  disqualified  person  in  ignorance  of  the  fact  of  disqualification,  the 
election  may  be  void,  or  voidable,  or  in  the  latter  case  may  be  capable 
of  being  made  good,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  disqualification. 
The  objection  may  require  ulterior  proceedings  to  be  taken  before  some 
competent  tribunal  in  order  to  be  made  available,  or  it  may  be  such  as 
to  place  the  elected  candidate  on  the  same  footing  as  if  he  had  never 
existed  and  the  votes  for  him  were  a  nullity ;  but  in  no  case  are  the 
electors  who  vote  for  hiin  deprived  of  their  votes.  If  the  fact  becomes 
known  and  is  declared  while  the  election  is  still  incomplete,  they  may 
instantly  proceed  to  another  nomination  and  vote  for  another  candidate. 
If  it  be  disclosed  afterwards,  the  party  elected  may  be  ousted,  and  the 
election  declared  void  (by  a  competent  tribunal)  ;  but  the  candidate  in 
the  minority  will  not  be  deemed  ipso  facto  elected.  But  where  an 
elector  before  voting  receives  due  notice  that  a  particular  candidate  is 
disqualified,  and  yet  will  do  nothing  but  tender  his  vote  for  him,  he 
must  be  taken  voluntarily  to  abstain  from  exercising  his  franchise ;  and 
therefore,  however  strongly  he  may  in  fact  dissent,  and  in  however  strong 
terms  he  may  disclose  his  dissent,  he  must  be  taken  in  law  to  assent  to 
the  election  of  the  opposing  and  qualified  candidate,  for  he  will  not 
take  the  only  course  by  which  it  can  be  resisted,  that  is,  help  to  elect 
some  other  person.  *  *  *  If  he  dissents  from  the  choice  of  A.,  who  is 
qualified,  he  must  say  so  by  voting  for  some  other,  also  qualified  ;  he  has  no 
right  to  employ  his  franchise  merely  in  preventing  an  election,  and  so 
defeating  the  object  for  which  he  is  empowered  and  bound  to  attend. 
*  *  *  Where  the  disqualification  depends  upon  a  fact  which  may 
be  unknown  to  the  elector,  he  is  entitled  to  notice,  for  without  that  the 
inference  of  assent  could  not  fairly  be  drawn,  nor  could  the  consequences 
as  to  the  vote  be  just ;  but  if  the  disqualification  be  of  a  sort  whereof 
notice  is  to  be  presumed,  none  need  expressly  be  given.  No  one  can 
doubt  that  if  an  elector  would  nominate  and  vote  only  for  a  woman,  his 
vote  would  be  thrown  away.  The  fact  would  then  be  notorious,  and 
every  man  would  be  presumed  to  know  the  law  upon  that  fact." 
[Code.]  28 


218  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

A  person  who  is  present  at  the  meeting,  when  elected  to  any  office,  will 
be  deemed  to  accept  the  same  unless  he  declares  his  refusal,  so  that  if 
the  meeting  chooses  to  excuse  him  a  new  election  may  be  had.  Any 
votes  given  for  him  for  an  incompatible  office  subsequent  to  such 
acceptance  must  be  deemed  yoid.  It  is  in  his  power,  however,  to  elect 
which  of  two  such  offices  he  will  hold,  and,  if  present,  he  should  declare 
which  he  vacates,  that  the  meeting  may  at  once  proceed  to  fill  it.  If 
absent,  his  acceptance  of  the  office  of  trustee,  in  preference  to  any  other 
district  office,  is  to  be  presumed. 

While  the  session  continues,  the  meeting  has  power,  under  a  reso- 
lution to  reconsider  its  proceedings,  to  make  a  new  election,  although 
a  person  has  been  then  elected  with  his  assent  (see  Digest,  ante,  p.  19), 
because  the  right  to  the  office  is  not  complete  until  the  inhabitants  by 
separating  have  left  it  incumbent  upon  the  person  elected  to  enter  upon 
his  duties.  If,  however,  they  separate,  an  adjourned  session  has  no 
power  to  oust  an  officer  elected  (see  Digest,  ante,  p.  16),  though  they 
may  fill  a  vacancy,  existing  by  his  refusal  to  accept.  (Digest,  ante,  p.  100.) 

The  inhabitants  have  the  power  and  it  is  their  duty  to  fill  every 
vacancy  existing  in  a  district  office  at  any  meeting,  notwithstanding  it 
has  existed  more  than  one  month.  (Digest,  ante,  p.  105.)  If  the 
vacancy  has  been  created  by  any  other  cause  than  the  expiration  of  the 
incumbent's  term,  it  is  advisable  that  a  resolution  should  be  passed 
declaring  such  vacancy  to  exist,  and  expressly  stating  the  ground  on 
which  the  meeting  adjudges  the  office  vacant.  Cases  are  reported 
(Digest,  ante,  pp.  51,  53)  where  removal  from  a  district,  though  not  such 
as  to  forfeit  the  rights  of  the  party  as  an  inhabitant,  and  where  an  actual 
incapacity  to  serve,  though  not  declared  by  law,  have  been  held  suffi- 
cient to  justify  treating  them  as  creating  a  vacancy.  In  such  cases, 
the  officer  removing,  or  becoming  incapable,  for  any  reason,  of  discharging 
his  duties,  ought  to  furnish  written  evidence  thereof  by  a  tender  of  his 
resignation.  If  he  omits  to  do  so,  it  is  for  the  appointing  power  to  judge 
in  the  first  instance  whether  a  vacancy  exists;  and  although  it  may  err 
in  so  declaring,  the  officer  appointed  will  be  deemed  an  officer  de  facto, 
and  his  acts  in  relation  to  the  public  and  third  persons  deemed  valid, 
until  his  election  is  pronounced  void. 

4.  To  designate  a  site  for  a  district  school  house :  This  should  be 
done  by  a  resolution  describing  the  metes  and  bounds  in  such  a  manner 
that  a  surveyor  can  lay  it  out  without  recourse  to  any  other  document, 
or  to  oral  instructions.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  33.)  The  power  of  desig- 
nating a  site  cannot  be   delegated  to  the  trustees.  (17  Wend.,   437.) 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  219 

They  or  any  other  committee  may  be  charged  by  the  inhabitants  with 
making  the  necessary  examinations  as  to  location,  title,  price,  &c,  but  it  is 
not  until  the  meeting  have  acted  upon  their  report  that  a  site  is  desig- 
nated. Nor  is  the  site  then  established,  so  as  to  require  a  special  meeting 
to  change  it,  until  a  title  has  been  acquired  or  legal  obligations  incurred 
by  the  trustees  in  behalf  of  the  district  by  a  valid  contract  for  the 
purchase  (see  Digest,  ante,  p.  76),  which,  to  be  binding  under  the  statute 
of  frauds,  must  be  in  writing,  under  seal  and  subscribed  by  the  parties  to 
be  bound  thereby. 

The  question  frequently  arises  whether  the  district  has  a  title  to  a  site, 
so  as  to  render  a  new  designation  equivalent  to  an  additional  site  requir- 
ing the  consent  of  the  school  commissioner  under  the  8th  subdivision  of 
this  section,  or  a  change  of  site  requiring  a  meeting  called  by  special 
notice  for  that  purpose.  It  is  ordinarily  started  in  consequence  of 
doubts,  as  to  the  title  of  a  site  actually  occupied  or  claimed  by  the 
district,  growing  out  of  the  want  of  a  deed,  or  the  loss  of  a  deed  without 
its  having  been  recorded,  where  one  was  originally  executed. 

A  right  in  real  estate  may  be  acquired  either  by  grant,  by  deed  duly 
executed  and  delivered,  or  by  an  adverse  possession  of  twenty  years 
under  claim  of  title,  in  which  case  the  law  presumes  a  grant,  or  by  a 
valid  contract  for  the  conveyance,  where  a  court  of  equity  will  enforce 
a  specific  performance,  or  in  the  case  of  the  public  by  dedication. 

In  reference  to  the  first  mode :  In  the  case  of  occupation  under  a 
grant,  it  is  not  material  that  the  deed  has  been  lost,  for  the  paper  itself 
is  but  evidence  of  the  fact,  and  upon  showing  its  loss,  the  existence  and 
contents  of  the  deed  may  be  proved  by  other  testimony ;  nor  is  the 
fact  of  its  not  having  been  recorded  material,  for  the  recording  act  is 
only  for  the  benefit  of  purchasers  in  good  faith  and  without  notice,  and 
the  possession  of  real  estate  is  held  by  the  courts  to  be  sufficient  notice 
to  put  a  purchaser  upon  inquiry  as  to  the  rights  of  the  party  in  posses- 
sion, and  to  charge  him  with  notice  of  all  facts  to  which  such  inquiry 
might  have  led.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  7.) 

As  to  the  second  mode,  or  adverse  possession  :  A  naked  possession, 
not  accompanied  with  any  claim  of  right,  will  never  constitute  any  bar 
but  will  enure  to  the  advantage  of  the  real  owner.  The  Code  of  Pro- 
cedure provides  that  the  occupation  "  shall  be  deemed  to  have  been  under 
and  in  subordination  to  the  legal  title,  unless  it  appear  that  such 
premises  have  been  held  and  possessed  adversely  to  such  legal  title  for 
twenty  years,"  and  it  defines  what  kind  of  possession  shall  be  deemed 
adverse,  as  follows :  "  Whenever  it  shall  appear  that  the  occupant  or 


220  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

those  under  whom  he  claims  entered  into  the  possession  of  premises 
under  claim  of  title,  exclusive  of  any  other  right,  founding  such  claim 
upon  a  written  instrument  as  being  a  conveyance  of  the  premises  in 
question,  or  upon  the  decree  or  judgment  of  a  competent  court,  and 
that  there  has  been  a  continued  occupation  and  possession  of  the  premises 
included  in  such  instrument,  decree  or  judgment,  or  of  some  part  of 
such  premises,  under  such  claim  for  twenty  years."  "  Where  it  shall 
appear  that  tbere  has  been  an  actual  continued  occupation  under  claim 
of  title,  exclusive  of  any  other  right,  but  not  founded  upon  a  written 
instrument  or  decree,  the  premises  so  actually  occupied,  and  no  other, 
shall  be  deemed  to  have  been  held  adversely."  It  provides  in  the  latter 
case  that  "  land  shall  be  deemed  to  have  been  possessed  and  occupied 
in  the  following  cases  only  : 

"  1.  When  it  bas  been  protected  by  a  substantial  inclosure  ; 

"2.  When  it  has  been  usually  cultivated  and  improved."  (Sec  Code  of 
Procedure,  in  appendix  to  Session  Laws  of  1851,  p.  33.) 

Where  there  has  been  an  actual  occupation  of  premises  in  either  of  the 
modes  above  described,  an  oral  claim  of  exclusive  right  is  sufficient, 
without  the  pretension  that  such  claim  is  founded  upon  a  written  instru- 
ment, and  a  claim  of  title  even  under  a  paper  altogether  void  and 
inoperative  as  a  deed,  will  yet  characterize  a  possession  as  adverse.  (24 
Wend.,  604.)  The  possession  is  evidence  only  of  such  title  as  the  party 
has  asserted.  If,  therefore,  the  claim  has  been  only  to  hold  at  suffer- 
ance, or  conditionally,  or  for  a  term  of  years,  it  can  never  ripen  into  a 
better  title. 

As  to  the  third  mode :  An  equitable  title  is  acquired  where  a  party  has 
entered  into  possession  under  a  contract  for  a  conveyance,  and  has 
performed  or  tendered  performance  of  the  conditions  upon  which  by 
the  contract  the  legal  title  was  to  be  transferred.  A  court  of  equity 
will  enforce  such  a  contract,  where  there  has  been  a  partial  execution  of 
it  by  the  transfer  of  possession  on  the  one  side  and  by  payments  on  the 
other,  notwithstanding  the  contract  was  by  parol,  and  void  under  the 
statute  of  frauds.  Every  case  of  this  character  will  require  the  careful 
examination  of  counsel  into  all  the  facts,  and  no  discussion  of  the 
principles  applicable  thereto  would  be  profitable  in  this  place. 

Fourthly,  land  may  be  dedicated  to  pious  and  charitable  purposes 
(and  such  is  the  establishment  of  a  school),  with  or  without  writing, 
by  express  declaration  of  the  party  thus  devoting  it,  or  by  unequivocal 
acts  on  his  part,  such  as  marking  a  lot  in  the  plot  of  a  tract  divided  by 
him  into  town  lots  as  the  "  school  lot,"  and  referring  to  such  plot  in  his 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  221 

deeds  of  conveyance,  as  was  the  case  in  11  Pa.  State  Rep.,  444.  All 
that  is  required  is  the  assent  of  the  owner  of  the  land,  clearly  mani- 
festing his  purpose  to  make  a  permanent  appropriation,  and  the  fact  of 
its  being  used  for  the  public  purpose  intended  by  the  appropriation.  (See 
6  Hill,  412.) 

5.  To  lay  such  tax  on  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district  as  the 
meeting  shall  deem  sufficient  to  purchase  or  lease  a  suitable  site  for  a 
school-house,  and  to  build,  hire  or  purchase  such  school-house,  and  to 
keep  in  repair  and  furnish  the  same  with  the  necessary  fuel  and  appen- 
dages :  It  is  not  necessary  to  designate  a  site  before  laying  a  tax  to 
build  a  school-house.  (17  Wend.,  437;  3  Denio,  116.)  The  same  rule 
will  apply  to  a  tax  for  the  purchase  of  a  site.  The  inhabitants  may 
vote  such  tax  as  they  "  deem  sufficient,"  and  if,  upon  the  selection  of  a 
site  and  the  negotiation  for  its  purchase,  the  tax  is  found  to  be,  in  fact, 
insufficient,  may  vote  a  further  tax.  If  it  be  found  unnecessarily  large, 
they  may  vote  to  refund  the  excess  to  the  tax  payers  or  appropriate  it  to 
any  purpose  for  which  they  have  power  to  lay  a  tax.  (Com,  School  Dec, 
315.)  There  is  no  limitation  to  the  amount  which  may  be  voted  for  the 
purchase  of  a  site  (Digest,  ante,  p.  41),  and  the  expense  of  investigating 
the  title  and  recording  the  deed  may  legitimately  be  included.  (Digest, 
ante,  p.  15.)  The  purchase  of  additional  ground  to  enlarge  the  site  is  not 
a  change  of  site,  and  does  not  require  the  vote  of  a  meeting  called  by 
special  notice,  nor  the  consent  of  the  school  commissioner.  (Digest,  ante, 
p.  34.)  Though  the  statute  authorizes  the  leasing  of  a  site,  it  does  not 
permit  the  contracting  of  a  permanent  debt  for  the  future  rent.  (Digest, 
ante,  p.  32.)  It  is  not  uncommon  for  districts  to  hold  land  under  lease 
granting  it  for  a  consideration,  paid  in  advance,  so  long  as  the  same  shall 
be  used  for  the  site  of  a  school-house  or  the  purpose  of  a  district  school. 
It  is  greatly  to  be  preferred  that  the  district  should  obtain  an  indefeasible 
estate  in  fee  simple,  and,  whenever  possible,  it  should  be  procured  ;  but, 
inasmuch  as  there  is  no  compulsory  process  provided  by  the  laws  of  this 
state  by  which  the  title  to  land  for  school  purposes  can  be  transferred, 
where  the  owner  is  unwilling,  a  district  is  sometimes  under  the  necessity 
of  accepting  an  inferior  estate.  In  such  cases  a  question  often  arises  as 
to  the  right  of  the  district  to  the  school-house  at  the  expiration  of  the 
term  for  which  the  land  is  held.  The  law  is  thus  stated  by  Judge  Har- 
ris (7  Barb.,  266)  :  "Anyone  who  has  a  temporary  interest  in  land,  and 
who  makes  additions  to  it  or  improvements  upon  it  for  the  purpose  of 
the  better  use  or  enjoyment  of  it,  while  such  temporary  interest  con- 
tinues, may,  at  any  time  before  his  right  of  enjoyment  ceases,  rightfully 


222  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

remove  such  additions  and  improvements.  If  he  omit  to  sever  the 
addition  or  improvement  until  his  right  of  enjoyment  ceases,  such  omis- 
sion is  to  be  deemed  an  abandonment  of  his  right,  and  thereafter  the 
addition  or  improvement  he  has  made  becomes,  to  all  intents,  a  part  of 
the  inheritance,  and  the  tenant,  as  well  as  any  other  person  who  severs 
it,  becomes  a  trespasser.  I  think  this  may  now  be  stated  to  be  the 
general  rule  in  respect  to  fixtures  which  a  tenant  attaches  to  the  free- 
hold. To  this  extent  has  the  original  rule  of  the  common  law  yielded 
to  the  changed  condition  of  society.  There  may  be  exceptions  to  the 
general  rule  I  have  stated,  but  I  think  they  will  be  found  limited  to 
cases  where  the  removal  of  the  additions  or  improvements  made  by  the 
tenant  would  operate  to  the  prejudice  of  the  inheritance,  by  leaving  it 
in  a  worse  condition  than  when  the  tenant  took  possession." 

A  tax  voted  for  the  purchase  of  a  site  cannot  be  voted  by  instalments. 
(Digest,  ante,  p.  79.) 

While  it  is  no  objection  to  a  tax  that  a  title  has  not  been  acquired,  it 
is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  not  to  part  with  the  money  without  receiving 
a  conveyance  [Digest,  ante,  p.  54),  and  in  respect  to  this  duty,  a  ques- 
tion frequently  arises  about  incumbrances  by  way  of  mortgage.  The 
vote  appropriating  money  for  the  purchase  of  a  site  is  to  be  construed 
as  limiting  the  amount  the  district  can  at  any  time  be  called  upon  to 
pay  for  it,  and  therefore  implies  (unless  the  contrary  expressly  appears) 
a  title  free  from  any  incumbrance.  Where  a  portion  of  a  tract  subject 
to  mortgage  is  purchased,  the  rule  of  law  is  that  upon  a  foreclosure  the 
land  remaining  the  property  of  the  mortgagor  shall  be  first  sold,  and 
if  that  prove  insufficient  to  satisfy  the  mortgage,  then  that  which  he 
has  conveyed  is  to  be  sold  in  the  inverse  order  of  alienation ;  that  is  to 
say,  that  which  he  conveyed  latest  is  to  be  sold  first.  It  may  frequently 
happen  that  the  district  will  have  ample  security,  in  the  land  retained 
by  the  person  from  whom  it  derives  title  to  a  site,  for  its  indemnity 
against  a  mortgage,  and  that  the  existence  of  a  mortgage,  covering  land 
greatly  exceeding  in  value  the  amount  secured  thereby,  will  be  but  a 
nominal  incumbrance  and  no  serious  objection  to  the  title.  If  this  be 
clear,  however,  there  will  ordinarily  be  little  difficulty  in  procuring  from 
the  holder  of  the  mortgage  a  release  of  the  site  from  its  lien.  If  the 
trustees  fail  in  obtaining  it,  they  will  be  justified  in  requiring  an  express 
vote  of  the  district,  after  laying  the  facts  before  a  meeting,  before  pay- 
ing for  the  site  or  making  any  expenditure  or  contract  for  building 
upon  it. 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  .223 

In  regard  to  the  power  to  vote  a  tax  for  a  school-house,  the  question 
sometimes  arises  how  far  it  is  permissible  that  the  house  should  he  con- 
nected with  other  erections  made  for  different  purposes,  and  subject  to 
other  control  than  that  of  the  district.  It  is  held  that  there  can  be  no 
partnership  in  the  erection  of  a  school-house  which  will  prevent  the 
district  from  controlling  it  entirely  for  the  purpose  of  a  district  school, 
and  that  a  tax  cannot  be  voted  for  a  building  for  joint  use,  as  a  church 
and  school-house  or  an  academy  and  school-house.  (  Com.  School  Dec, 
201,  290.)  It  is  not  essential,  however,  to  constitute  a  house,  that  it 
should  include  the  whole  of  the  building  in  which  it  is  contained. 
Apartments,  with  an  outer  door  to  each,  and  having  no  communication 
with  each  other,  are  considered  as  distinct  houses,  though  they  origi- 
nally made  but  one.  (6  Mod.  R.,  214.)  In  6  Mete,  510,  the  supreme 
court  of  Massachusetts  held  that  "  if,  under  color  of  this  corporate  power 
of  a  district,  the  district  should  vote  to  erect  an  expensive  and  ornamen- 
tal building,  with  a  view  to  improve  the  neighborhood,  to  enhance  the 
value  of  real  estate,  to  accommodate  societies,  lecturers,  dramatic  exhibi- 
tions, or  even  to  have  a  convenient  place  for  religious  meetings  or  public 
worship,  or  for  any  other  use  than  that  of  a  district  school,  it  would  not 
be  within  the  legitimate  authority  of  a  school  district,  and  any  vote  to 
levy  a  tax  on  the  inhabitants  for  such  purpose  would  be  void."  In  that 
very  case,  however,  the  court  sustained  a  tax  of  $1700,  voted  with 
liberty  to  certain  persons  "to  build  a  hall  over  the  school-house,  with 
the  privilege  of  an  entrance  and  stair-way  in  the  front  entry  of  said 
house,  in  consideration  that  the  district  may  have  the  use  of  said  hall, 
free  of  charge,  for  all  school  district  meetings,  for  all  examinations  of  its 
schools,  and  for  the  delivery  of  lectures  on  the  subject  of  education,  no 
public  meeting  being  held  in  said  hall  during  the  usual  school  hours 
unless  by  consent  of  the  prudential  committee  of  the  district,  and  the 
proprietors  of  said  hall  insuring  the  whole  building."  In  1  Mete,  541, 
it  was  held  that  tenements  are  as  essentially  distinct  when  one  is  under 
the  other,  as  where  one  is  by  the  side  of  the  other;  and  in  4  Mass.  R., 
576,  the  court  say  that  "  in  legal  contemplation,  each  of  the  parties  has 
a  distinct  dwelling-house,  adjoining  together,  the  one  being  situated  over 
the  other.  The  lower  room  and  the  cellar  are  the  dwelling-house  of  the 
defendant ;  the  chamber,  roof  and  other  parts  of  the  edifice  are  the 
plaintiff's  dwelling-house."  (See  also  10  Conn.  B.,  318.) 

While  it  is  very  desirable  that  every  district  should  own  an  ample 
and  commodious  school-house,  entirely  separate  from  every  other  build- 
ing,  it  sometimes  happens  in  feeble  districts  that  the  scantiness  of  its 


224  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

means  renders  it  necessary  to  consult  economy  by  uniting  with  a  reli- 
gious society  or  other  association  in  erecting  two  houses  under  the  same 
roof;  the  upper  story,  for  example,  being  a  church  or  town  hall,  while 
the  lower  is  a  school-house.  No  legal  objection  is  conceived  to  exist  to 
such  an  arrangement,  provided  the  district  secures  by  proper  covenants  : 
First,  The  undivided  control  at  all  times  of  the  school-rooms  and  of 
the  doors  and  passages  affording  access  thereto.  Second,  That  the 
other  rooms  shall  not  be  used  at  any  time  during  school  hours  for  an 
assemblage  or  purpose  which  can  distract  the  attention  of  pupils,  or 
interfere,  by  noise  or  otherwise,  with  their  instruction.  Third,  That 
the  parties  using  the  other  rooms  shall  pay  the  whole,  or  a  definite  pro- 
portion, of  the  expense  of  such  repairs  upon  those  rooms,  or  the  roof  or 
other  parts  of  the  building,  as  the  district  shall  from  time  to  time  deem 
necessary  for  maintaining  the  school-house  in  good  condition  and  pro- 
tecting it  from  injury  by  leakage  or  otherwise.  Fourth,  That  those 
parties  shall  pay  the  expense  of  any  insurance  (not  in  a  mutual  com- 
pany, as  the  district  has  no  power  to  enter  into  such  a  contract  as  their 
policies  create)  necessary  to  protect  the  district  from  the  increased  risk 
of  fire,  caused  by  any  use  to  which  the  other  parts  of  the  building  may 
be  put.  The  best  mode  to  secure  the  performance  of  these  covenants  is 
for  the  district  to  insert  them  as  a  condition,  in  a  lease  of  the  rooms,  to 
be  executed  by  the  trustees — the  district  retaining  the  general  title  to 
the  site  and  everything  upon  it  —  and  the  lease  to  terminate  upon  a 
breach  of  any  of  the  conditions,  besides  authorizing,  in  express  terms, 
the  trustees  to  recover  any  damages  the  district  may  sustain  by  a  failure 
to  perform  any  of  the  conditions.  It  should  also  contain  an  express 
provision  that  whenever  a  district  meeting  shall  determine  that  the 
residue  of  the  building  is  needed  for  school  purposes,  the  same  shall 
become  its  property  upon  payment  of  the  then  appraised  value  of  the 
labor  and  materials  used  in  its  construction. 

A  fence,  separate  privies  for  the  two  sexes,  wood-house,  stoves,  stove- 
pipe and  bell  have  been  held  to  be  necessary  appendages  to  a  school- 
house,  or  rather  that  it  is  within  the  discretion  of  a  district  meeting  to 
adjudge  them  such  and  vote  a  tax  therefor. 

Money  cannot  be  raised  by  a  tax  in  a  school  district  for  contingent 
purposes  {Coin.  School  Dec,  233,  and  Digest,  ante,  p.  S),  nor  can  a  tax 
be  voted  for  arrearages  generally,  or  to  reimburse  trustees  or  other  offi- 
cers of  the  district  for  moneys  expended  by  them,  unless  it  appears  by 
the  vote  that  the  money  is  to  be  applied  to  one  of  the  objects  for  which 
taxes  may  by  law  be  raised.  (Id.,  316.) 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  225 

Where  a  tax  is  voted  by  the  inhabitants  for  any  purpose,  the  specific 
amount  of  the  tax  and  the  particular  purpose  for  which  it  is  designed 
should  be  fully  and  clearly  stated.  (Digest,  ante,  p.  94.)  And  where 
several  objects  of  expenditure  are  to  be  provided  for,  the  amount  to  be 
raised  for  each  should  be  expressed  in  the  resolution,  in  order  that  the 
district  and  the  trustees  may  know  the  precise  extent  of  their  liability 
and  the  mode  of  its  application.  There  may  be  cases,  however,  where 
the  necessary  amount  to  be  raised  cannot  be  ascertained  with  any 
approach  to  accuracy,  and  in  such  cases  the  district  may  direct  the  per- 
formance of  specific  acts  by  the  trustees,  or  authorize  them  to  incur 
such  expenses  as  may  be  necessary  to  the  accomplishment  of  a  particu- 
lar object  to  be  specified,  and  the  trustees  are  then  authorized  by  §  109, 
i  chap.  480  of  1847,  No.  117,  to  raise  such  amount  by  tax  upon  the  dis-' 
trict,  in  the  same  manner  as  if  the  definite  sum  to  be  raised  had  been 
voted.  This  provision  Avas  held  in  4  Benio,  248,  to  cover  a  case  where 
the  trustees  were  directed  to  build  a  house  of  specified  dimensions  and 
to  let  the  job  of  building  to  the  lowest  bidder,  which  had  the  effect  of 
restricting  the  expense  to  a  less  sum  than  four  hundred  dollars;  and  the 
court  say  that  "  if  the  district  had  left  the  whole  to  the  discretion  of 
the  trustees,  and  they  had  kept  within  the  four  hundred  dollars,  the  act 
would  have  authorized  the  raising  of  the  money.  (See  also  5  Hill,  44, 
and  Digest,  ante,  p.  50.)  It  was  held  by  Supt.  Young  that  the  inhabi- 
tants of  a  district  may  legally  vote  a  tax  to  enlarge  their  school-house, 
notwithstanding  it  may  already  have  cost  $400,  without  a  certificate 
from  the  town  superintendent.  This  general  delegation  of  authority 
should,  however,  be  resorted  to  only  in  cases  of  necessity. 

It  was  held  (24  Wend.,  266)  that  the  direction  in  the  vote  of  a  tax 
for  repairs,  that  the  collection  was  to  be  postponed  until  the  repairs  were 
done,  did  not  invalidate  the  resolution  or  the  tax,  the  tax  list  being 
made  out  thirty  days  after  the  vote. 

6.  To  alter,  repeal  and  modify  their  proceedings  from  time  to  time,  as 
occasion  may  require  :  The  power  to  repeal  proceedings  must  be  exerted 
before  they  have  been  carried  into  effect,  so  that  other  parties  have 
acquired  rights  or  incurred  responsibilities  under  them.  Thus,  where  a 
tax  list  and  warrant  had  been  made  out  but  not  delivered  to  the  collector, 
the  inhabitants  were  held  to  have  the  power  to  rescind  the  vote  imposing 
the  tax  (4  Hill,  109),  but  not  where  the  greater  part  had  been  collected. 
(4  Barb.,  25.)  Where  trustees  have  made  a  contract  under  the  authority 
of  the  district,  it  is  in  effect  the  contract  of  the  district,  and  it  is  beyond 
its  power  to  rescind  the  contract  by  repealing  the  resolution  in  pursuance 

[Code.]  29 


226  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

of  which  it  was  made.  A  full  release  of  damages  from  all  persons 
having  acquired  any  right  of  action,  or  the  restoration  of  things  to  the 
same  condition  as  they  were  in  when  a  resolution  was  passed,  might  give 
the  district  the  right  to  repeal  or  modify  it. 

Any  resolution  directly  or  necessarily  repugnant  to  a  previous  one 
repeals  it;  and  the  rule  in  relation  to  statutes  is  laid  down  (3  How., 
U.  S.  R.,  63G),  that  if  a  subsequent  statute  be  not  repugnant  in  all  its 
provisions  to  a  prior  one,  yet  if  the  latter  statute  was  clearly  intended 
to  prescribe  the  only  rule  that  should  govern  in  the  case  provided  for, 
it  repeals  the  prior  one.  As  repeals  by  implication  are  not  favored  by 
the  courts,  it  is  advisable  that  a  resolution  should  be  repealed  in  express 
terms,  where  such  is  the  intention.  When  this  is  proposed  at  the  same 
meeting  (including  adjourned  sessions  thereof)  at  which  the  resolution 
was  passed,  it  is  usually  by  a  motion  for  reconsideration.  The  general 
parliamentary  rule  is,  that  the  motion  to  reconsider  can  only  be  made  by 
a  person  who  voted  with  the  successful  side  upon  the  question  to  be 
reconsidered.  The  reason  of  the  rule  is,  that  but  for  it  the  members  in 
the  minority  might  exhaust  the  time  of  the  meeting  fruitlessly;  for  it  is 
to  be  presumed  that  the  vote  will  be  the  same,  unless  the  contrary  is 
shown  by  some  person  who  voted  with  the  majority  indicating  a  change 
of  mind.  It  was  held  {Digest,  ante,  p.  90)  that  this  rule  does  not 
prevail  in  a  district  meeting  unless  the  meeting  adopts  it.  In  that  case 
the  majority  of  the  meeting  chose  to  disregard  it.  Nevertheless  it  is  a 
very  proper  rule  of  order  to  be  applied  by  the  chairman,  subject  to 
a  reversal  on  an  appeal  to  the  meeting  from  his  decision ;  wdien,  if  a 
majority  wish  to  reconsider,  they  can  indicate  it  by  overruling  him.  If 
a  motion  to  reconsider  is  carried,  the  resolution  to  which  it  relates  is 
open  to  amendment,  and,  if  not  again  passed  in  its  original  or  an  amended 
form,  is  rejected.  If,  without  taking  the  question  on  the  original  reso- 
lution a  second  time,  the  meeting  separates  for  an  adjourned  session,  it 
may  then  be  called  up  and  adopted  or  rejected. 

The  unqualified  repeal  of  a  repealing  statute  revives  the  original 
enactment.  This  rule  was  applied,  in  2  Denio,  233,  to  a  vote  on  tlie  5th 
December,  repealing  a  vote  of  Nov.  25th,  which  latter  repealed  the 
vote  for  a  tax,  passed  Oct.  7th,  and  it  was  held  that  the  vote  for  a  tax 
was  renewed  on  the  5th  December,  though  a  tax  list  made  out  under 
the  original  vote  fell  to  the  ground,  and  a  new  one  was  required  to  be 
made  after  December  5th. 

It  is  obvious  that  the  meeting  cannot  do,  under  the  form  of  recon- 
sidering or  modifying  a  former  proceeding,  what  it  could  not  do  directly  ; 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  227 

and  therefore,  though  it  may  rescind  a  resolution  designating  or 
changing  a  site  [Digest,  ante,  p.  G4),  it  cannot  adopt  a  new  one,  unless  it 
was  called,  or  be  an  adjourned  meeting  which  was  called,  by  a  special 
notice  for  that  purpose. 

7.  To  vote  a  tax  for  the  purchase  of  a  book  for  the  purpose  of 
recording  the  proceedings  of  their  respective  districts  :  The  importance 
of  full  and  exact  records  of  district  proceedings  cannot  well  be  exagge- 
rated. They  ought  to  be  so  kept  as  to  show  upon  their  face  every  fact 
of  which  it  might  be  necessary  to  give  evidence  in  a  suit  at  law,  in  order 
to  establish  the  validity  of  every  resolution  adopted.  For  example,  the 
order  of  the  trustees  for  calling  a  meeting,  the  return  of  the  clerk 
showing  upon  whom  and  in  what  manner  he  had  served  notice,  the 
consent  of  the  school  commissioner  or  supervisor  when  required  to 
authorize  a  proceeding,  might  much  better  be  engrossed  in  the  book  of 
records,  in  the  first  instance,  than  left  to  rest  upon  the  uncertain  custody 
of  loose  pieces  of  paper.  It  may  be  necessary  to  prove  the  facts  at  a 
remote  period  of  time  ;  and  the  way  to  avoid  controversy  in  respect  to 
them  is  always  to  act  upon  the  presumption  that  controversy  will  arise, 
and  to  prepare  the  evidence,  in  advance,  to  meet  it.  The  habit  of  doing 
this  will  of  itself  do  much  to  preclude  all  opportunity  for  cavil. 

It  is  always  desirable  that  the  records  should  show  who  was  present 
and  took  part  in  the  proceedings  of  each  meeting.  For  this  purpose 
the  orderly  method  of  proceeding  would  be  for  the  clerk  (or  person 
officiating  as  such),  immediately  after  the  organization  of  the  meeting,  to 
read  the  order  under  which  it  was  called,  and  the  list  from  his  return 
of  the  persons  on  whom  he  served  notice,  requesting  each  one  present  to 
answer  as  his  name  is  read ;  noting,  upon  the  minutes :  "  On  reading  the 
clerks'  return  of  the  inhabitants  on  whom  he  had  served  notice,  the 
following  were  found  to  be  present,  viz  :  Abraham  Jackson,  Abraham 
Jackson,  Jr.,  &c,  «fcc."  At  an  annual  meeting,  for  which  no  personal 
service  of  notice  is  necessary,  the  clerk  could  call  the  roll  from  a  list 
of  the  inhabitants  alphabetically  arranged.  In  either  case  he  should 
note  on  the  minutes  the  presence  of  every  voter,  although  no  notice  had 
been  served  upon  him. 

If  any  person  offering  to  vote  is  challenged,  the  fact  should  be  noted 
in  the  minutes,  and  also  whether  he  made  or  declined  making  the 
declaration  required  by  law.  This  is  important,  because  no  person  will 
be  permitted  to  question  the  proceedings  of  a  meeting  on  the  ground  of 
the  illegality  of  a  vote,  if  he  stood  by  and  saw  it  offered  without 
objection,  unless  he  shows  himself  to  have  been  ignorant  of  the  facts  which 


228  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

would  have  required  him  to  object.  Nor  will  the  illegality  of  the  vote 
be  regarded  unless  it  affected  the  result,  and,  therefore,  it  is  highly 
desirable  that  the  minutes  should  show  how  each  person  voted  on  each 
proposition  submitted  to  the  meeting.  The  christian  names  of  the 
voters  should  be  given,  and  not  merely  their  initials. 

It  is  proper,  but  not  legally  necessary,  that  the  minutes  should  be  read 
over  to  the  meeting,  for  its  approval  or  correction,  if  need  be,  before  the 
adjournment.  In  order  to  enable  the  clerk  to  do  this,  all  resolutions 
should  be  reduced  to  writing  before  the  question  upon  them  is  taken. 

As  the  cost  of  a  little  paper  is  of  the  most  trilling  consequence  in 
comparison  with  the  advantages  of  having  a  neat  and  accurate  history  of 
district  proceedings  in  a  shape  for  convenient  consultation,  it  would  be 
well  for  each  district  to  provide  a  book  of  records,  of  at  least  foolscap 
size,  firmly  bound,  and  containing  a  sufficient  number  of  pages  to  contain 
ample  records  for  a  series  of  years. 

8.  With  the  consent  of  the  [school  commissioner]  of  the  town,  to 
designate  sites  for  two  or  more  school-houses  for  such  district,  and  lay  a 
tax  on  the  taxable  property  in  such  district  to  purchase  or  lease  such 
sites,  and  to  hire,  build  or  purchase  such  school-houses,  and  to  keep  in 
repair  and  furnish  the  same  with  necessary  fuel  and  appendages,  and 
may  also  in  their  discretion  lay  a  tax,  not  exceeding  twenty  dollars  in 
any  one  year,  to  purchase  maps,  globes,  black-boards  and  other  school 
apparatus  :  The  provision  for  more  than  one  site  and  school-house  is 
intended  to  obviate  the  inducements  to  a  division  of  districts.  There 
are  great  advantages  in  large  and  populous  districts ;  and  it  has  always 
been  the  policy  of  the  department  to  discourage  their  division,  unless  it 
becomes  necessary  on  account  of  the  great  distance  which  children  are 
compelled  to  travel  in  going  to  school.  It  may  often  be  convenient  to 
have  a  school-house  for  very  young  children  separate  from  that  attended 
by  those  more  advanced.  In  cases  of  dissatisfaction  with  a  teacher, 
there  is  the  opportunity  for  parents  to  exercise  a  choice,  without  the 
serious  injury  to  the  course  of  instruction  which  results  from  with- 
drawing their  children  entirely  from  the  public  schools.  It  may 
frequently  be  profitable  to  hire  temporarily  a  building  or  rooms  for 
an  additional  school-house,  where  there  is  not  such  an  absolute  necessity 
for  it  as  would  prompt  the  trustees  to  exercise  that  power  under  §  120, 
chap.  480  of  1847,  post,  No.  148,  without  the  vote  of  the  district. 

It  is  to  be  remembered  that,  however  many  school-houses  or  teachers 
there  may  be  in  the  district,  the  attendants  in  all  constitute  but  one 
school.     (See  p.  126,  ante.) 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  229 

The  principal  facts  in  geography  are  learned  better  by  the  eye  than 
in  any  other  manner,  and  there  ought  to  be  in  every  school  room  a  map 
of  the  world,  of  the  United  States,  of  this  state  and  of  the  county. 
Globes,  also,  are  desirable,  but  not  so  important  as  maps.  Large  black- 
boards, in  frames  or  plaster,  are  indispensable  to  a  well  conducted  school. 
The  operations  in  arithmetic,  performed  on  them,  enable  the  teacher  to 
ascertain  the  degree  of  the  pupils'  acquirements  better  than  any  result 
exhibited  on  slates.  He  sees  the  various  steps  taken  by  the  scholar,  and 
can  require  him  to  give  the  reason  for  each.  It  is  in  fact  an  exercise 
for  the  entire  class ;  and  the  whole  school,  by  this  public  process,  insen- 
sibly acquires  a  knowledge  of  the  rules  and  operations  in  this  branch 
of  study. 

Cards,  containing  the  letters  of  the  alphabet  or  words,  may  be  usefully 
hung  up  in  the  room.  Indeed,  the  whole  apparatus  provided  by  Mr. 
Holbrook  and  others  is  eminently  calculated  to  facilitate  the  acquisi- 
tion of  knowledge  and  to  render  it  agreeable. 

There  is  some  difficulty  in  limiting  definitively  the  meaning  of  the 
words  school  apparatus.  Few  would  hesitate  to  admit  that  a  copy  of 
Webster's  Dictionary,  or  an  atlas  for  reference  by  teacher  and  pupils, 
came  fairly  within  the  intent  of  the  statute.  If  the  inhabitants  should 
deem  it  proper  to  furnish,  by  tax,  text  books  to  be  used  by  the  pupils  in 
school,  after  it  had  provided  the  articles  specifically  named  in  the 
statute,  it  would  not  appear  an  unreasonable  exercise  of  their  discretion. 

No.  96.  No  tax  to  be  voted  by  a  district  meeting,  for  build- 
ing, hiring  or  purchasing  a  school-house,  shall  exceed  the  sum 
of  four  hundred  dollars,  unless  the  [school  commissioner]  of 
the  town  in  which  the  school-house  is  to  be  situated  shall 
certify  in  writing  his  opinion  that  a  larger  sum  ought  to  be 
raised,  and  shall  specify  the  sum,  in  which  case  a  sum  not 
exceeding  the  sum  so  specified  shall  be  raised  ;  and  in  districts 
composed  of  parts  of  several  towns,  the  certificate  of  a  major 
part  of  the  [school  commissioners]  of  said  towns  shall  be 
necessary  for  such  purpose.  (Sec.  70,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modi* 
Jied  in  conformity  to  No.  65.) 

It  is  the  tax  that  is  limited  to  $400,  not  the  expense  of  building  the 
house,  which  may  include,  in  addition,  the  avails  of  the  sale  of  the 
former  house  and  site.  So  much  of  the  decision  on  page  31  Digest,  cnite, 
as  seems  to  conflict  with  this  has  been  expressly  overruled.  If,  after  the 
expenditure  of  $400  in  building  the  house,  the  tax  is  found  insufficient 


230  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

to  finish  it,  the  commissioner  may  certify  that  the  further  sum  necessary, 
specifying  it,  ought  to  be  raised,  and  the  inhabitants  may  vote  a  tax  for 
the  amount  so  certified.  (Com.  School  Dec,  258.)  If  this  additional 
amount  prove  insufficient,  the  commissioner  may  again  certify  and  the 
inhabitants  vote  a  further  tax.  (Id.,  340.) 

The  commissioner  whose  certificate  is  to  be  obtained  is  the  one  hav- 
ing jurisdiction  of  the  town  in  which  the  school-house  is  to  be  erected. 
The  law  forbids  the  division  of  a  town  in  forming  an  assembly  district 
or  in  dividing  a  county  into  school  commissioners'  sections.  Section  40, 
chap.  480  of  1847,  also  provides  that  "no  school-house  shall  be  erected 
so  as  to  stand  on  the  division  lines  of  any  two  or  more  towns."  This  pro- 
vision remains  in  full  force,  though  the  residue  of  that  section  has  become 
obsolete.  The  statute  is  nevertheless  peremptory  in  requiring  the  cer- 
tificate of  a  major  part  of  the  commissioners  having  jurisdiction  in  the 
several  towns  of  which  a  joint  district  includes  any  part.  In  such  a 
case  it  is  necessary  to  the  validity  of  a  tax,  exceeding  $400,  not  only 
that  a  majority  of  the  commissioners  should  certify,  but  that  the  com- 
missioner having  jurisdiction  of  the  town  in  which  the  school-house  is 
to  be  situated  should  be  one  of  that  majority. 

The  limitation  of  this  section  applies  only  to  the  school-house.  The 
amount  of  tax  which  may  be  voted  for  purchase  or  lease  of  site,  and  for 
repairs,  furniture,  fuel  and  appendages,  is  left  wholly  to  the  discretion  of 
the  district.  (See  Digest,  anti,  p.  41.) 

No.  97.  Whenever  a  majority  of  all  the  taxable  inhabitants 
of  any  school  district,  to  be  ascertained  by  taking  and  record- 
ing the  ayes  and  noes  of  such  inhabitants  attending  at  any 
annual,  special  or  adjourned  school  district  meeting  legally 
called  or  held,  shall  determine  that  the  sum  proposed  and 
provided  for  in  the  next  preceding  section  shall  be  raised  by 
instalments,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of  such  dis- 
trict, and  they  are  hereby  authorized,  to  cause  the  same  to  be 
levied,  raised  and  collected  in  equal  annual  instalments,  in 
the  same  manner  and  with  the  like  authority  that  other  school 
district  taxes  are  raised,  levied  and  collected,  and  to  make  out 
their  tax  list  and  warrant  for  the  collection  of  such  instal 
ments,  as  they  become  payable,  according  to  the  vote  of  the 
said  inhabitants,  but  the  payment  or  collection  of  the  last 
instalment  shall  not  be  extended  beyond  five  years  from  the 
time  such  vote  was  taken  ;  and  no  vote  to  levy  any  such  tax. 
shall  be  reconsidered  except  at  an  adjourned,  general  or  special 
meeting,  to  be  held  within  thirty  days  thereafter,  and  the 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  231 

same  majority  shall    be  required   for   reconsideration    as   is 
required  to  levy  such  tax.  {See.  71,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

No  other  tax  can  be  raised  by  instalments  under  this  section  than  one 
for  building,  hiring  or  purchasing  a  school-house,  and  in  that  case  only 
■when  it  exceeds  $400.  [Digest,  ante,  pp.  79  and  99.)  The  instalments 
must  be  equal  and  annual,  and  cannot  be  distributed  in  unequal  amounts, 
or  with  any  other  interval  between  successive  ones  than  a  year.  (See 
Digest,  ante,  pp.  67,  68,  for  an  exposition  of  the  vote  required  to  direct 
the  levy  of  a  tax  by  instalments.)  A  majority  of  the  voters  present  may 
(with  the  certificate  of  the  commissioner)  lay  the  tax  to  be  collected 
immediately,  but  it  is  required  that  they  should  also  constitute  a 
majority  of  the  taxable  inhabitants  attending  for  the  purpose  of  direct- 
ing the  manner  of  its  collection  by  instalments. 

The  general  practice  has  been,  and  it  is  believed  to  accord  best  with 
the  intent  of  the  statute,  for  the  trustees  to  make  out  their  tax  list  for 
the  first  instalment  upon  the  taxable  property  as  it  then  exists,  and  for 
their  successors  to  make  separate  tax  lists  each  year  thereafter  upon  the 
taxable  property  as  it  exists  at  the  time  the  instalments  respectively 
become  payable.  Persons  may  thus  become  subject  to  the  tax  who  had 
no  means  of  resisting  its  imposition  ;  but  the  erection  of  a  school  is  to 
be  regarded  as  a  permanent  benefit  to  the  district,  and  they  voluntarily 
assume  the  burden  of  paying  for  it  by  becoming  inhabitants.  It  would 
seem  necessary  that  the  warrant  for  the  collection  of  the  last  instalment 
should  be  returnable  within  five  years  from  the  time  of  taking  the  vote, 
and  therefore  that  the  tax  list  for  it  should  be  made  out  at  least  thirty 
days  before  that  time. 

The  sum  of  $100,  with  interest  at  seven  per  cent,  may  be  paid  by 
two  annual  instalments  of  $55.30.9  each  ;  by  three  of  $38.10.5  ;  by  four 
of  $29.52.3  ;  by  five  of  $24.38.9.  In  order  to  provide  for  the  payment 
of  any  sum,  with  the  interest  on  it  at  seven  per  cent,  in  equal  annual 
instalments,  the  sum  must  be  multiplied  by  the  decimal  fraction 
.55309179  for  two  years,  .38105168  for  three,  .29522812  for  four,  or 
.24389069  for  five,  the  first  instalment  being  in  each  case  payable  at 
the  expiration  of  a  year  from  the  time  to  which  the  computation  relates. 

No.  98.  Whenever  a  school-house  shall  have  been  built  or 
purchased  for  a  district,  the  site  of  such  school-house  shall 
not  be  changed,  nor  the  building  thereon  be  removed,  as  long 
as  the  district  shall  remain  unaltered,  unless  by  the  consent, 
m  writing,  of  the  [supervisor]  of  the  town  or  towns  within 


232  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

which  such  district  shall  be  situated,  stating  that  in  their 
opinion  such  removal  is  necessary  ;  nor  then,  unless  a  majority 
of  all  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  said  district,  to  be  ascertained 
by  taking  and  recording  the  ayes  and  noes  at  a  special  meeting 
called  for  that  purpose,  shall  be  in  favor  of  such  new  site. 
(Sec.  73,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  56, 
ante.) 

Any  alteration  of  the  territory  of  the  district,  however  trifling,  made 
subsequent  to  the  building  or  purchase  of  a  school-house,  dispenses  with 
the  necessity  of  the  consent  of  the  supervisor  to  authorize  a  district 
meeting  to  change  the  site  of  that  school-house  (Digest,  ante,  p.  98), 
but  no  change  of  the  inhabitants  constitutes  an  alteration  unless  accom- 
panied by  a  change  of  boundaries. 

The  site  may  be  changed,  so  far  as  the  prohibition  of  this  section 
affects  the  question,  at  any  time  before  a  school-house  standing  thereon 
shall  have  been  built  or  purchased.  (Com.  School  Dec,  182.)  But  after 
the  site  has  been  purchased,  or  the  trustees  have  made  themselves 
legally  responsible  by  a  valid  contract  to  purchase  it,  in  pursuance  of  a 
resolution  of  the  district,  it  becomes  an  established  site,  so  that  the 
resolution,  cannot  be  rescinded,  under  the  general  principle  that  a  resolu- 
tion which  has  been  executed  cannot  be  revoked  to  the  prejudice  of 
those  who  have  acquired  rights  under  it.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  76,  and 
comments  under  sixth  clause  of  No.  89.)  In  such  case,  therefore  (unless 
an  intermediate  alteration  of  the  district  has  taken  effect),  the  assent  of 
the  supervisor  is  requisite  to  change  the  site,  or  that  of  the  commis- 
sioner to  procure  an  additional  one. 

If  the  title  to  a  site  fails,  the  designation  of  a  new  one  is  not  to  be 
regarded  as  a  change  of  site.  (Digest,  ante,  p.  62.)  The  resolution  in 
such  case  should  recite  the  fact  that  the  district  is  destitute  of  a  site,  in 
consequence  of  its  title  to  one  formerly  occupied  having  failed  by  the 
termination  of  a  lease,  judgment  in  an  action  of  ejectment,  or  whatever 
other  circumstance  may  have  brought  it  to  an  end. 

The  majority  requisite  to  a  change  of  site  is  a  majority  of  those  pre- 
sent and  voting,  as  ascertained  by  taking  and  recording  the  ayes  and 
noes  at  a  special  meeting  called  for  that  purpose.  (  Digest,  ante,  p.  65 ; 
4  Grattan,  530.) 

The  certificate  of  the  supervisor  is  to  state  that  in  his  opinion  a  removal 
or  change  of  site  is  necessary  and  that  he  consents  to  such  removal.  The 
intent  of  the  statute  is  to  render  his  certificate  necessary  to  give  the 
meeting  jurisdiction  of  the  subject  of  a  change  of  site,  but  not  to  give 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  233 

him  a  negative  upon  the  selection  which  it  may  make  of  a  new  site.  It 
is  not  for  him  to  assent  or  dissent  to  a  removal  to  any  particular  loca- 
tion, but  only  to  guard  tlie  district  from  being  put  to  trouble  by  frivo- 
lous agitation  of  the  subject,  where,  in  his  judgment,  there  is  no  such 
inconvenience  in  the  existing  location  as  to  justify  a  change. 

In  a  joint  district,  composed  of  parts  of  two  towns,  both  the  supervi- 
sors must  unite  in  the  certificate ;  if  composed  of  three  or  more,  the 
case  comes  under  the  provision  of  §  27,  title  17,  chap.  8,  part  3,  of  the 
Revised  Statutes :  "  Whenever  any  power,  authority  or  duty  is  confided 
by  law  to  three  or  more  persons,  and  whenever  three  or  more  persons 
are  authorized  or  required  by  law  to  perform  any  act,  such  act  may  be 
done,  and  such  power,  authority  or  duty  may  be  exercised  and  performed 
by  a  majority  of  such  persons  or  officers,  upon  a  meeting  of  all  the  per- 
sons or  officers  so  entrusted  or  empowered,  unless  special  provision  is 
otherwise  made." 

The  act  in  this  case  being  of  a  judicial  character,  all  must  meet  and 
confer,  but  a  majority  may  decide.  The  certificate  should  state  that  all 
met. 

No.  99.  Whenever  the  site  of  a  school-house  shall  have 
been  changed,  as  herein  provided,  the  inhabitants  of  the  dis- 
trict entitled  to  vote,  lawfully  assembled  at  any  district 
meeting,  shall  have  power,  by  a  majority  of  the  votes  of  those 
present,  to  direct  the  sale  of  the  former  site  or  lot,  and  the 
buildings  thereon  and  appurtenances,  or  any  part  thereof,  at 
such  price  and  upon  such  terms  as  they  shall  deem  most 
advantageous  to  the  district ;  and  any  deed  duly  executed  by 
the  trustees  of  such  district,  or  a  majority  of  them,  in  pursu- 
ance of  such  direction,  shall  be  valid  and  effectual  to  pass  all 
the  estate  or  interest  of  such  school  district  in  the  premises, 
intended  to  be  conveyed  thereby,  to  the  grantee  named  in 
such  deed ;  and  when  a  credit  shall  be  directed  to  be  given 
upon  such  sale  for  the  consideration  money,  or  any  part  thereof, 
the  trustees  are  hereby  authorized  to  take,  in  their  corporate 
name,  such  security,  by  bond  and  mortgage  or  otherwise,  for 
the  payment  thereof  as  they  shall  deem  best,  and  shall  hold 
the  same  as  a  corporation,  and  account  therefor,  to  their  suc- 
cessors in  office  and  to  the  district,  in  the  manner  they  are 
now  required  by  law  to  account  for  moneys  received  by  them  ; 
and  the  trustees  of  any  such  district  for  the  time  being  may, 
in  their  name  of  office,  sue  for  and  recover  the  moneys  due 
and  unpaid  upon  any  security  so  taken  by  them  or  their  pre- 

[Code.]  30 


234  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

decessors  in  office,  with  interest  and  cost.  (Sec.  74,  chap.  480 
of  1847.) 

Neither  the  trustees  nor  the  inhabitants  have  any  power  to  sell  land 
belonging  to  the  district,  unless  it  be  the  site  of  a  school-house,  for 
which  a  new  one  has  been  substituted. 

If  any  credit  is  to  be  given  upon  the  sale,  the  inhabitants  in  district 
meetings  should,  by  resolution,  specify  the  exact  terms  thereof,  and 
should  also  fix  the  lowest  price  to  be  accepted.  When  a  bond  and 
mortgage  are  executed,  they  should  run,  to  "  A.  B.,  C.  D.  and  E.  F., 
trustees  of  school  district  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  ,  and  their 

successors  in  office  or  assigns." 

The  trustees  become  personally  responsible  to  the  district  for  the 
amount  bid  at  the  sale  as  for  so  much  cash  received,  unless  they  take  a 
bond  and  mortgage  or  some  other  security.  This  implies  some  pledge 
or  obligation  collateral  and  in  addition  to  the  personal  responsibility  of 
the  purchaser,  such  as  the  signature  of  a  solvent  inuorser  or  surety  to 
a  promissory  note,  in  accepting  which  they  are  responsible  for  the  same 
care  which  a  prudent  person  would  exercise  in  taking  security  for  a  debt 
due  to  himself. 

No.  100.  All  moneys  arising  from  any  sale  made  in  pursu- 
ance of  the  last  preceding  section  shall  be  appropriated  to 
the  payment  of  the  expenses  incurred  in  procuring  a  new  site 
and  in  removing  or  erecting  a  school-house,  or  either  of  them, 
so  far  as  such  application  thereof  shall  be  deemed  necessary. 
(Sec.  75,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

If  the  money  is  not  necessary  to  pay  for  a  new  site  or  removing  or 
erecting  a  schoobhouse,  it  may  be  appropriated  by  the  district  to  any 
purpose  for  which  it  would  be  authorized  to  levy  a  tax ;  and  in  the 
absence  of  any  vote  by  the  district  the  trustees  may  appropriate  it  to 
any  purpose,  such  as  the  purchase  of  fuel,  the  exemption  of  indigent 
inhabitants  from  rate  bills,  or  the  rent  of  temporary  school  rooms,  for 
which  they  are  authorized  to  levy  a  tax  without  a  vote  of  the  district. 

No.  101.  Where,  by  reason  of  the  inability  to  collect  any 
tax  or  rate  bill,  there  shall  be  a  deficiency  in  the  amount 
raised,  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  in  district  meeting  shall 
direct  the  raising  of  a  sufficient  sum  to  supply  such  deficiency 
by  tax,  or  the  same  shall  be  collected  by  rate  bill,  as  the  case 
may  require.  (Sec.  84,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  235 

The  inability  to  collect  a  tax  or  rate  bill  is  to  be  ascertained  from  the 
return  of  the  collector,  tinder  oath,  containing  an  account  of  the  sums 
remaining  unpaid,  and  testifying  that  after  diligent  efforts  he  has  been 
unable  to  collect  the  same.  The  inhabitants  have  the  right,  and  should 
in  general  exact  such  evidence,  but  it  is  in  their  power  to  waive  it. 
[Digest,  ante,  p.  19.)  The  taxes  authorized  by  this  section  are  not  to 
be  confounded  with  that  for  the  amount  of  exemptions  in  a  rate  bill, 
which  it  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  collect  by  tax  without  the  action 
of  a  district  meeting,  and  which  must  be  certified  before  the  issuing  of 
their  warrant,  and  consequently  before  any  effort  to  collect. 

The  last  clause,  "or  the  same  shall  be  collected  by  rate  bill,"  must  be 
construed  as  relating  to  the  duty  of  trustees.  It  would  seem  to  be  very 
clear  that  where  there  is  an  inability  to  collect  a  rate  bill,  by  reason  of 
the  poverty  of  the  individual  against  whom  it  has  been  made,  it  is  a  case 
which  requires  a  tax. 

No.  102.  The  taxable  inhabitants  of  each  school  district  in 
the  state  shall  have  power,  when  lawfully  assembled  at  any 
district  meeting,  to  lay  a  tax  on  the  district,  not  exceeding 
ten  dollars  in  any  one  year,  for  the  purchase  of  a  district 
library  consisting  of  such  books  as  they  shall  in  their  district 
meeting  direct,  and  such  further  sum  as  they  may  deem 
necessary  for  the  purchase  of  a  book  case.  The  intention  to 
propose  such  tax  shall  be  stated  in  the  notice  required  to  be 
given  of  such  meeting.  (Sec.  133,  chop.  480  of  1847.) 

Section  135  of  the  act  of  1847,  following  chap.  80  of  1835,  from 
which  it  was  taken,  directs  that  "  the  taxes  authorized  by  the  foregoing 
section  shall  be  assessed  and  collected  in  the  same  manner  as  a  tax  for 
building  a  school-house." 

The  books  to  be  purchased  by  tax  under  this  section  are  such  as  the 
district  meeting  shall  direct,  while  those  purchased  by  the  library  money 
apportioned  to  the  district  are  selected  by  the  trustees.  The  meeting 
may  adopt  such  regulations  as  it  deems  proper  for  the  management  of 
so  much  of  the  library  as  is  purchased  by  a  district  tax,  while  the  gene- 
ral regulations  in  respect  to  those  bought  by  money  received  from  the 
state  are  prescribed  by  the  State  Superintendent. 

A  special  notice  of  the  intention  to  propose  a  tax  for  such  purpose 
is  necessary  to  give  the  meeting  power  to  lay  one  for  the  purchase  of 
a  library  op  book  case. 


236  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

No.  103.  *  *  *  *  Whenever  the  number  of  volumes  in  the 
district  library  of  any  district,  numbering  over  fifty  children 
between  the  ages  of  five  and  sixteen  years,  shall  exceed  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five,  or  of  any  district  numbering  fifty 
children  or  less,  between  the  said  ages,  shall  exceed  one  hun- 
dred volumes,  the  inhab.tants  of  the  district  qualified  to  vote 
therein  may,  at  a  special  or  annual  meeting  duly  notified  for 
that  purpose,  by  a  majority  of  votes  appropriate  the  whole 
or  any  part  of  the  library  money  belonging  to  the  district  for 
the  current  year  to  the  purchase  of  maps,  globes,  black-boards 
or  other  scientific  apparatus  for  the  use  of  the  school ;  and 
in  every  district  having  the  required  number  of  volumes  in 
the  district  library,  and  the  maps,  globes,  black-boards  and 
other  apparatus  aforesaid,  the  said  moneys,  with  the  approba- 
tion of  the  State  Superintendent,  may  be  applied  to  the  pay- 
ment of  teachers'  wages.  (Sec.  136,  chap.  480  of  .1847.) 

The  act  of  1851,  which  prescribed  the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one 
years  as  those  within  which  children  are  to  be  enumerated  as  pupils,  did 
not  amend  the  preceding  section.  In  order,  therefore,  to  authorize  a 
district  to  apply  its  library  money  to  the  purchase  of  scientific  apparatus, 
or,  with  the  approbation  of  the  State  Superintendent,  to  paying  teachers' 
wages,  it  must  number  over  fifty  children  between  the  ages  of  five  and 
sixteen,  and  actually  have  in  its  library  over  one  hundred  and  twenty- 
five  volumes,  or  over  one  hundred  volumes  if  the  number  of  children 
between  those  ages  be  less  than  fifty.  The  mere  fact  that  the  district 
has  at  some  previous  time  possessed  the  requisite  number  of  volumes  is 
not  sufficient. 

On  making  an  application  to  the  State  Superintendent,  the  facts  must 
be  proved  by  an  affidavit,  stating  the  number  of  children,  the  number 
of  volumes  actually  in  the  library,  and  enumerating  what  maps,  globes 
and  other  scientific  apparatus  have  been  procured  and  are  actually  in 
use  in  the  school. 

The  vote  of  a  district  and  the  permission  of  the  State  Superintendent 
relate  only  to  the  application  of  library  money  for  the  current  year,  and 
must  be  annually  renewed  to  justify  any  diversion  of  it  from  the  purchase 
of  books. 

No.  104.  The  trustees  chosen  at  the  first  legal  meeting  of 
any  school  district  shall  be  divided  by  lot  into  three  classes, 
to  be  numbered  one,  two  and  three  ;  the  term  of  office  of  the 
first  class  shall  be  one  year,  of  the  second  two,  of  the  third 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  237 

three;  and  one  trustee  only  shall  thereafter  annually  be 
elected,  who  shall  hold  his  office  for  three  years  and  until  a 
successor  shall  be  duly  elected  or  appointed.  In  case  of  a 
vacancy  in  the  office  of  either  of  the  trustees,  during  the  period 
for  which  he  or  they  shall  have  been  respectively  elected,  the 
person  or  persons  chosen  or  appointed  to  such  vacancy  shall 
hold  the  office  only  for  the  unexpired  term.  (  Sec.  63,  chop. 
480  o/1847.) 

Prior  to  1843,  all  trie  trustees  were  chosen  annually,  and  held  their 
office  for  but  one  year.  By  sec.  12,  chap.  133  of  that  year,  the  mode 
of  election  and  tenure  of  office  were  changed  to  the  mode  and  tenure 
above  prescribed.  The  intent  of  the  statute  is,  that  one  trustee  shall 
go  out  of  office  by  regular  expiration  of  his  term,  and  a  successor  be 
chosen  in  his  place  at  each  annual  meeting.  As  another  vacancy  may 
exist  at  the  same  time,  caused  by  death,  removal  or  other  cause  than 
expiration  of  term — which  vacancy  may  have  been  temporarily  filled 
by  appointment — the  statute  prescribes  that  the  person  elected  to  fill 
such  vacancy  shall  hold  only  for  the  unexpired  term,  so  that  the  power 
of  filling  the  office  for  three  full  years  shall  return  to  the  inhabitants  at 
the  same  time,  as  if  no  vacancy  had  occurred  otherwise  than  by  the 
expiration  of  a  full  term. 

No.  105.  The  clerk,  trustees,  collector  and  librarian  of  each 
school  district  shall  hold  their  respective  offices  until  the 
annual  meeting  of  such  district  next,  following  the  time  of 
their  appointment.  (Sec.  76,  chap.  480  of  1847,  as  amended  by 
sec.  3,  chap.  382  o/1849.) 

It  is  a  familiar  rule  of  interpretation,  that  one  part  of  a  statute  must 
be  so  construed  by  another  that  the  whole  may,  if  possible,  stand.  To 
apply  this  rule,  the  word  appointment,  in  the  preceding  section,  must  be 
construed  as  used  in  contradistinction  to  election  by  the  inhabitants. 
Otherwise  the  section  would  be  entirely  inconsistent  with  the  preceding 
as  making  the  term  of  trustees  but  one  year  instead  of  three.  It  is  to 
be  understood,  then,  as  meaning  that  in  case  of  appointment  of  a  trustee 
by  the  supervisor,  or  a  clerk,  collector  or  librarian  by  the  trustees,  the 
person  so  appointed  holds  to  the  next  annual  meeting,  when,  in  the  case 
of  a  trustee,  the  residue  of  the  unexpired  term,  temporarily  filled  by  the 
appointment,  is  to  be  filled  by  election. 


238  POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS. 

No.  106.  In  case  the  office  of  trustee  shall  be  vacated  by 
the  death,  refusal  to.  serve,  removal  out  of  the  district,  or 
incapacity  of  any  such  officer,  and  the  vacancy  shall  not  be 
supplied  by  a  district  meeting  within  one  month  thereafter, 
the  [supervisor]  of  the  town  may  appoint  any  person  residing 
in  such  district  to  supply  such  vacancy.  ( Sec.  77,  chap.  480 
of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  56,  ante.) 

The  power  of  the  supervisor  under  this  section,  and  of  trustees  under 
the  next,  to  fill  vacancies,  is  confined  strictly  to  vacancies  resulting  from 
the  causes  above  specified.  They  are  not  to  assume  to  set  aside  an 
election  on  the  ground  of  a  legal  incapacity  existing  at  the  time,  and 
which  the  voters  disregarded.  [Digest,  ante,  p.  45.)  They  must, 
from  the  necessity  of  the  case,  adjudicate  upon  the  question  of  fact 
whether  a  vacancy  exists,  and,  in  the  written  order  making  an  appoint- 
ment, should  expressly  state  the  facts  which  have  caused  a  vacancy. 
See  Digest  (ante,  pp.  51,  53),  for  cases  of  disability  in  fact  to  discharge 
the  duties  of  an  office  constituting  good  cause  for  declaring  it  vacant. 

A  refusal  to  serve  is  not  the  defective  performance  or  omission  of  a 
particular  act,  but  a  generai  non-performance  of  the  duties  of  the  office. 
(6  Cowcn,  479.) 

No.  107.  In  case  of  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  school  district 
clerk,  collector  or  librarian,  for  any  of  the  causes  mentioned 
in  the  next  preceding  section,  such  vacancy  may  be  supplied 
by  appointment,  under  the  hands  of  the  trustees  of  the  district 
or  a  majority  of  them,  and  the  persons  so  appointed  shall 
hold  their  respective  offices  until  the  next  annual  meeting  of 
the  district,  and  until  others  are  elected  in  their  places. 
( Sec.  78,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

It  is  the  design  of  the  statute  that  officers  shall  hold  over  after  the 
expiration  of  their  term,  so  that  the  public  interests  shall  not  suffer  for 
the  want  of  a  person  competent  and  responsible  for  the  discharge  of 
every  official  duty.  The  office  becomes  vacant  for  the  purpose  of 
giving  the  inhabitants  the  power  to  elect ;  but,  until  they  have  done  so, 
is  not  vacant,  as  to  the  power  to  discharge  its  duties. 

The  trustees  should  not  reappoint  a  person  who  has  refused  to  accept 
or  to  serve,  or  whose  resignation  has  been  accepted.  The  statute  regards 
the  penalty  under  the  next  section  as  an  equivalent  for  the  service.  (11 
John.,  432;  Digest,  ante,  p.  2.) 


POWERS  OF  DISTRICT  MEETINGS.  239 

No.  108.  Every  person  duly  chosen  or  appointed  to  any 
such  office,  who,  without  sufficient  cause,  shall  refuse  to  serve 
therein,  shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  five  dollars  ;  and  every  person  so 
chosen  or  appointed,  and  not  having  refused  to  accept,  who 
shall  neglect  to  perform  the  duties  of  his  office,  shall  forfeit 
the  sum  often  dollars.  (Sec.  79,  chap.  480  o/'1847.) 

These  penalties  are  (by  No.  53,  ante)  to  be  sued  for  by  the  super- 
visor, and  their  collection  reported  to  the  commissioner.  They  belong 
to  the  district  for  refusing  to  serve  which  they  were  incurred.  What 
is  sufficient  cause  for  a  refusal  to  serve  is  a  question  that  must  be  deter- 
mined by  the  tribunal  in  which  the  action  is  brought.  The  law  regards 
every  person  as  under  an  obligation  to  bear  Ins  part  in  the  burden  of 
personal  service  to  the  public,  or  to  indemnify  it  by  a  fine.  Mere 
unwillingness  to  abstract  the  necessary  time  from  the  labors  of  his  ordi- 
nary calling  is  not  a  sufficient  cause ;  it  is  for  him  to  determine  whether 
the  payment  of  the  fine,  or  the  injury  to  his  business,  or  love  of  ease, 
will  be  the  greater  damage,  and  to  meet  the  one  or  the  other  according 
to  his  election.  The  presumption  is  that,  if  sufficient  cause  existed,  the 
supervisor  would  have  accepted  the  resignation  of  the  officer  who  is 
sued ;  and  it  lies  upon  him  to  show  the  cause,  not  upon  the  plaintiff  to 
disprove  the  existence  of  any. 

No.  109.  Any  person  chosen  or  appointed  to  any  such 
office  may  resign  the  same,  by  presenting  his  resignation  to 
the  [supervisor]  of  the  town  where  such  officer  shall  reside, 
who  is  authorized,  for  sufficient  cause  shown  to  him,  to  accept 
the  same;  and  the  acceptance  of  such  resignation  shall  be  a 
bar  to  the  recovery  of  either  of  the  penalties  mentioned  in  the 
preceding  section.  The  [supervisor]  accepting  the  resig- 
nation shall  give  notice  thereof  to  the  clerk  or  to  one  of  the 
trustees  of  the  school  district  to  which  the  officer  resigning 
shall  belong.  (Sec.  80,  chap.  480  o/'1847,  modified  in  conformity 
to  No.  56.) 

In  a  joint  district,  a  resignation  can  be  accepted  only  by  the  super- 
visor of  the  town  in  which  the  officer  resides ;  though  the  courts  will 
probably  hold  that  the  supervisors  of  all  the  towns,  any  part  of  which 
is  included  in  the  district,  should  unite  in  an  action  for  the  penalty 
under  the  preceding  section.  In  such  a  case  each  of  the  supervisors 
should  report  the  recovery  of  a  judgment  to  the  commissioner,  men- 
tioning to  whom  it  has  been  paid,  who  should  be  the  supervisor  of  the 
town  in  which  the  school-house  is  situated. 


240  DUTIES  OF  DISTRICT  CLERK. 


DUTIES  OF  DISTRICT  CLERK. 

No.  110.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  clerk  of  each  school 
district : 

1.  To  record  the  proceedings  of  his  district  in  a  book  to  be 
provided  for  that  purpose  by  the  district,  and  to  enter  therein 
true  copies  of  all  reports  made  by  the  trustees  of  his  district 
to  the  [school  commissioner]  ; 

2.  To  give  notice  of  the  time  and  place  for  special  district 
meetings,  when  the  same  shall  be  called  by  the  trustees  of 
the  district,  to  each  inhabitant  of  such  district  liable  to  pay 
taxes,  at  least  five  days  before  such  meeting  shall  be  held,  in 
the  manner  prescribed  in  the  fifty-fifth  section  of  this  act 
(  No.  82,  ante ) ; 

3.  To  affix  a  notice,  in  writing,  of  the  time  and  place  for 
any  adjourned  district  meeting,  when  the  same  shall  be 
adjourned  for  a  longer  time  than  one  month,  in  at  least  four 
of  the  most  public  places  of  such  district,  at  least  five  days 
before  the  time  appointed  for  such  adjourned  meeting ; 

4.  To  give  the  like  notice  of  every  annual  district  meeting  ; 

5.  To  keep  and  preserve  all  records,  books  and  papers 
belonging  to  his  office,  and  to  deliver  the  same  to  his  succes- 
sor in  office ;  and  in  case  of  his  neglect  or  refusal  so  to  do,  he 
shall  be  subject  to  a  fine  of  not  exceeding  fifty  dollars.  (Sec. 
81,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  67. ) 

The  importance  of  full  and  accurate  records  has  been  sufficiently 
enforced  in  the  comment  upon  the  seventh  clause  of  No.  89.  A  clerk 
who  discharges  his  duty  in  this  respect  with  neatness  and  fidelity  will 
have  an  honorable  memorial  of  himself  to  endure  as  long  as  the  district 
exists.  The  entering  of  copies  of  the  reports,  annually  made  by  the 
trustees  to  the  school  commissioner,  is  of  consequence  to  preserve  the 
history  of  the  district  affairs,  and  to  afford  the  means  of  comparison 
with  the  annual  accounts  presented  by  the  trustees  to  the  district 
meeting. 

Too  great  care  cannot  be  exercised  in  giving  ample  notice  of  every 
special  meeting.  The  clerk  is  authorized  to  give  such  notices  upon  a 
verbal  direction  of  the  trustees  (Digest,  ante,  p.  43);  but  there  can 
be  no  excuse  for  the  omission  to  put  those  directions  in  writing,  upon 
the  records,  either  in  the  form  of  an  order  or  of  minutes  of  the  proceed- 
ings of  a  meeting  of  the  trustees.  In  the  personal  service  of  notice,  the 
clerk   cannot  act   by  deputy ;   but   no   objection   is   perceived  to   his 


'DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  241 

employing  an  agent  to  leave  written  notices  at  the  houses  of  those 
whom  he  may  find  absent  from  home.  The  proper  course,  however, 
would  be  for  the  clerk  to  provide  himself  with  a  sufficient  number  of 
written  notices  before  starting  upon  his  rounds.  In  this  way  he  would 
secure  the  giving  of  notice  at  the  earliest  practicable  time,  and  would 
avoid  the  trouble  of  obtaining  any  other  evidence  of  service  than  his 
own  official  return.  The  clerk  is  not  at  liberty  to  post  notices  of  annual 
or  adjourned  meetings  at  any  less  number  of  public  places  than  four. 
It  would  be  well  for  him  to  have  at  least  four  places  designated  by  a 
resolution  of  the  inhabitants  as  the  most  public  and  proper  for  posting 
notices.  In  case  of  an  adjourned  meeting,  it  would  be  prudent  to  repeat 
iu  the  notices  posted  the  enumeration  of  the  objects  for  which  it  was 
originally  called,  and  to  include  any  new  proposition  which  may  have 
been  presented  at  the  meeting. 

OF  THE  DUTY  OF  TPtUSTEES  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS. 

No.  111.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of  every  school 
district,  and  they  shall  have  power : 

1.  To  call  special  meetings  of  the  inhabitants  of  such 
districts  liable  to  pay  taxes,  whenever  they  shall  deem  it 
necessary  and  proper ; 

2.  To  give  notice  of  special,  annual  and  adjourned  meetings 
in  the  manner  prescribed  in  the  last  preceding  section,  if 
there  be  no  clerk  of  the  district,  or  he  be  absent  or  incapable 
of  acting ; 

3.  To  make  out  a  tax  list  of  every  district  tax  voted  by  any 
such  meeting,  containing  the  names  of  all  the  taxable  inhabi- 
tants residing  in  the  district  at  the  time  of  making  out  the 
list,  and  the  amount  of  tax  payable  by  each  inhabitant,  set 
opposite  to  his  name  ; 

4.  To  annex  to  such  tax  list  a  warrant,  directed  to  the 
collector  of  the  district,  for  the  collection  of  the  sums  in  such 
list  mentioned ; 

5.  To  purchase  or  lease  a  site  for  the  district  school-house, 
as  designated  by  a  meeting  of  the  district,  and  to  build,  hire 
or  purchase,  keep  in  repair  and  furnish  such  school-house 
with  necessary  fuel  and  appendages,  out  of  the  funds  collected 
and  paid  to  them  for  such  purposes ; 

6.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  district 
school-house ; 

7.  To  contract  with  and  employ  all  teachers  in  the  district ; 

[CODE.]  31 


242  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

8.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers,  when  qualified,  by- 
giving  them  orders  on  the  [supervisors]  for  the  public  money 
belonging  to  their  districts,  so  far  as  such  moneys  shall  be 
sufficient  for  that  purpose,  and  to  collect  the  residue  of  such 
wages  from  all  persons  liable  therefor ; 

9.  To  divide  the  public  moneys  received  by  them,  whenever 
authorized  by  a  vote  of  their  district,  into  not  exceeding  two 
portions  for  each  year  ;  to  assign  and  apply  one  of  such  por- 
tions to  each  term  during  which  a  school  shall  be  kept  in 
such  district,  for  the  payment  of  the  teacher's  wages  during 
such  term  ;  and  to  collect  the  residue  of  such  wages,  not  paid 
by  the  proportion  of  public  money  allotted  for  that  purpose, 
from  the  person  liable  therefor,  as  above  provided ; 

10.  To  exempt  from  the  payment  of  the  wages  of  teachers, 
either  in  part  or  wholly,  such  indigent  persons  within  the 
district  as  they  shall  think  proper,  in  any  one  quarter  or 
term,  and  the  same  shall  be  a  charge  upon  such  district  ; 

11.  To  certify  such  'exemptions  and  deliver  the  certificate 
thereof  to  the  clerk  of  the  district,  to  be  kept  on  file  in  his 
office  ; 

12.  To  ascertain,  by  examination  of  the  school  lists  kept  by 
such  teachers,  the  number  of  days  for  which  each  person  not 
so  exempted  shall  be  liable  to  pay  for  instruction,  and  the 
amount  payable  by  each  person ; 

13.  To  make  out  a  rate  bill  containing  the  name  of  each 
person  so  liable  and  the  amount  for  which  he  is  liable,  and 
to  annex  thereto  a  warrant  for  the  collection  thereof; 

14.  To  deliver  such  rate  bill,  with  the  warrant  annexed, 
after  the  same  shall  have  been  made  out  and  signed  by 
them,  to  the  collector  of  the  district,  who  shall  execute  the 
same  in  like  manner  with  other  warrants  directed  by  such 
trustees  to  such  collector  for  the  collection  of  district  taxes. 
And  the  collector  to  whom  any  such  rate  bill  and  warrant 
shall  be  delivered  for  collection  shall  possess  the  same  power, 
be  entitled  to  the  same  fees,  and  subject  to  the  same  restrictions 
and  liabilities,  with  their  bail  and  sureties,  as  by  this  title  is 
provided  in  proceedings  to  collect  school  district  taxes.  (Sec. 
82,chap.  480  of  1847,  as  amended  by  ^  6  and  12,  chap.  382 
of  1849.) 

Before  entering  upon  the  detailed  examination  of  this  very  important 
section,  by  its  several  clauses,  the  general  rule  must  be  reiterated  that 
every  power  committed  to  the  trustees  must  be  exercised  by  the  whole 
board  meeting  and  conferring  at  the  same  time  and  place,  and  not  by 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  243 

one  or  two  forming  a  determination  and  procuring  the  assent  of  the 
absent.  The  decision  of  the  majority,  under  such  circumstances,  is  the 
decision  of  the  trustees.  The  general  rule  is  that  the  decision  of  a 
majority,  or  even  of  all  three  under  other  circumstances,  is  not  the 
decision  of  the  trustees,  any  more  than  the  concurrent  opinion  of  all 
the  members  of  the  legislature,  arrived  at  by  taking  their  separate  votes 
at  their  respective  places  of  residence,  is  an  act  of  the  legislature.  In 
the  assessment  of  a  tax,  and  in  general  in  regard  to  every  other  duty 
judicial  in  its  character,  this  rule  is  inflexible. 

In  other  cases  a  majority  may  decide,  provided  all  have  been  notified 
of  the  intention  to  meet  and  confer  upon  the  subject  at  a  definite  time 
and  place.  This  rule  was  applied  in  16  Maine  R.,  185,  and  the  dismis- 
sal of  a  teacher  by  two,  a  majority  of  the  board,  held  illegal,  because 
the  third  was  not  notified,  although  he  was  out  of  town.  The  court  say  : 
"  That  does  not  allow  the  majority  to  dispense  with  the  rule  requiring 
notice.  They  are  not  in  such  cases  constituted  the  judges  whether  the 
notice  would  be  effectual  to  secure  his  attendance.  Nor  would  it  be 
entirely  safe  to  entrust  them  with  such  a  power,  as  it  would  afford  an 
opportunity  to  select  an  occasion  when  they  might  judge  that  a  notice 
would  be  ineffectual,  and  thus,  by  neglecting  to  give  it,  free  themselves 
from  the  presence  of  a  dissenting  minority.  It  may  often  happen  that 
those  will  be  able  to  attend  who  were  believed  to  be  so  situated  that 
their  attendance  could  not  be  expected.  Nor  is  there  any  difficulty  in 
giving  the  requisite  notice  in  such  cases,  as  one  left  at  the  usual  place 
of  residence  would  be  sufficient." 

The  law  goes  upon  the  supposition  that  a  majority  may  be  convinced 
by  a  minority  and  change  its  determinations,  and  therefore  will  not 
suffer  the  majority  to  act  without  giving  the  minority  a  notice  to  partici- 
pate. The  legal  presumption  is  that  officers  have  thus  acted,  but  this 
presumption  may  be  repelled  by  evidence  to  the  contrary.  (See  Digest, 
pp.  82,  93,  95.) 

The  case  last  cited  admits  that  a  merely  ministerial  duty,  the  execu- 
tion of  a  determination  of  the  board,  may  be  performed  by  a  sino-le 
trustee.  (See  also  p.  88.) 

In  case  of  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  trustee,  those  in  office,  whether 
two  or  one,  possess  all  the  powers  of  a  full  board  (Digest,  p.  15) ;  the 
very  first  act,  however,  ought  to  be  the  call  of  a  meeting  to  fill  the 
vacancy. 

We  may  proceed  now  to  exu  nne  the  powers  of  trustees  as  declared 
in  the  several  clauses  of  the  preceding  section. 


244  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

1.  To  call  special  meetings  of  the  inhabitants  of  such  districts  liable 
to  pay  taxes,  whenever  they  shall  deem  it  necessary  and  proper :  This 
powers  should  be  liberally  exercised  for  the  benefit  of  the  district ;  and 
the  trustees  should  call  special  meetings  whenever  requested  for  any  legal 
object  by  a  respectable  number  of  the  inhabitants,  notwithstanding  the 
trustees  may  themselves  be  opposed  to  the  object.  The  cases  on  pages 
8,  20  and  11  Digest,  ante,  will  be  found  to  speak  very  strongly  on  this 
point.  If  the  inhabitants  have  repeatedly  acted  upon  a  subject  in  such 
a  manner  as  to  show  that  their  determination  has  been  definitively 
formed,  and  is  not  likely  to  be  altered,  it  is  not  the  duty  of  the  trustees 
to  be  made  the  instruments  of  a  factious  minority,  by  harassing  them 
with  calls  for  special  meetings  to  reconsider  the  matter.  But  except  in 
such  case,  or  when  the  purpose  is  clearly  illegal,  it  is  very  much  a  matter 
of  course  that  a  meeting  should  be  ordered  by  the  trustees,  or,  in  case 
of  their  refusal,  by  the  State  Superintendent.  Application  to  him  for 
this  purpose  must  be  upon  notice  to  the  trustees,  in  the  manner  and 
form  of  an  appeal  from  their  refusal. 

It  is  no  objection  to  the  call  of  a  special  meeting  that  a  meeting 
having  the  same  subject  under  consideration  stands  adjourned.  (Digest, 
pp.  83.  98;  see  also  1  Metcalf,  509.) 

2.  To  give  notice  of  special,  annual  and  adjourned  meetings  in  the 
manner  prescribed  in  the  last  preceding  section,  if  there  be  no  clerk  of 
the  district,  or  he  be  absent  or  incapable  of  acting :  This  is  a  ministe- 
rial duty,  which  may  be  performed  by  one  of  the  trustees,  under  a 
resolution  of  the  board,  or  they  may  divide  the  district  into  sections, 
assigning  the  duty  of  giving  the  notice  in  each  to  one  of  their  number. 
This  power  should  be  exercised  by  them  in  the  case  of  a  refusal  of  the 
clerk  to  give  a  notice.  It  is  believed  they  may  in  such  case  delegate 
the  ministerial  duty  to  any  inhabitant,  furnishing  him  with  a  written 
authority,  under  their  hands,  which  can  be  exhibited  to  the  inhabitants 
whom  he  personally  notifies,  and  with  written  notices,  signed  by  the 
trustees,  to  be  left  at  the  houses  of  those  whom  he  may  find  absent  from 
home. 

3.  To  make  out  a  tax  list  of  every  district  tax  voted  by  any  such 
meeting,  containing  the  names  of  all  the  taxable  inhabitants  residing  in 
the  district  at  the  time  of  making  out  the  list,  and  the  amount  of  tax 
payable  by  each  inhabitant  set  opposite  to  his  name  :  In  4  Denio,  125, 
the  supreme  court  held  a  warrant  void  where  one  of  the  trustees  made 
out  a  tax  list,  and  took  the  list  and  warrant  to  a  second,  who  signed, 
but  the  other  trustee  was  not  consulted.     In  3  Denio,   598,  the  court 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  245 

held  an  assessment  void  which  was  made  and  signed  by  two  assessors, 
the  third  being  present  in  the  room  where  it  was  made,  but  not  being 
consulted  or  taking  any  part  in  the  business.  This  fact  was  permitted 
to  be  shown  by  the  evidence  of  one  of  the  assessors  who  acted,  to  repel 
the  legal  presumption  that  all  had  been  consulted.  The  decision  was 
affirmed  by  the  court  of  appeals.  (1  Comst.,  79;  see  Digest,  ante,  p.  95.) 
The  trustees  should  meet  for  the  purpose  of  making  out  a  tax  list 
within  ten  days  after  the  meeting  at  which  the  tax  is  voted,  so  that  if  it 
be  necessary  to  resort  to  any  other  evidence  than  the  last  town  assess- 
ment roll  for  the  valuation  of  property,  or  if  a  reduction  shall  be  claimed, 
they  may  give  twenty  days'  notice,  and  complete  the  tax  list  at  the 
expiration  of  thirty  days  after  the  district  meeting.  It  would  be  well 
for  them  to  give  notice  at  the  district  meeting  of  the  time  and  place  at 
which  they  will  meet  to  make  a  tax  list,  so  that  any  inhabitant  conceiving 
himself  entitled  to  a  reduction  may  appear  and  be  examined  on  oath  in 
regard  to  it.  The  mode  of  proceeding  in  arriving  at  valuation  and 
making  the  roll  will  be  treated  more  at  large  in  the  comments  upon  a 
succeeding  section.  It  is  proper  to  remark  here  that  the  heading  of 
every  tax  list  should  specify  for  what  purposes  and  under  what 
authority  every  sum  included  therein  is  levied.  Whenever  any  contro- 
versy is  anticipated  in  regard  to  any  tax,  it  should  be  made  on  a  separate 
list  from  others  voted  at  the  same  meeting,  so  as  not  to  embarrass  or 
delay  the  collection  of  that  which  is  undisputed.    ■ 

4.  To  annex  to  such  tax  list  a  warrant,  directed  to  the  collector  of  the 
district,  for  the  collection  of  the  sums  in  such  list  mentioned  :  The  form 
of  a  warrant  will  be  given  in  another  place.  The  supreme  court  (18 
Barb.,  331)  have  stated  it  as  "remarkable  that  the  school  laws,  as  they 
now  stand,  contain  no  provision  limiting  or  directing  the  time  within 
which  the  warrant  shall  direct  the  collector  to  collect  or  return  the  war- 
rant." It  is,  however,  clearly  contemplated  by  the  statute  that  the 
warrant  shall  mention  a  time  within  which  it  is  to  be  executed,  and  the 
practice  has  been  to  fix  it  at  thirty  days,  which  was  the  period  fixed  by 
§  100,  chap.  480  of  1847,  prior  to  the  amendment  made  by  §  5,  chap. 
382  of  1849.  It  is  better  to  conform  to  that  practice  than  to  fix  any 
other  period,  unless  in  a  case  where  it  is  palpable  that  an  immediate 
collection  is  unnecessary,  and  the  convenience  of  the  tax  payers  is  to  be 
greatly  promoted  by  a  brief  extension. 

5.  To  purchase  or  lease  a  site  for  the  district  school-house,  as  desig- 
nated by  a  meeting  of  the  district,  and  to  build,  hire  or  purchase,  keep 
in  repair  and  furnish  such  school-house  with  necessary  fuel  and  appen- 


246  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

dages,  out  of  the  funds  collected  and  paid  to  them  for  such  purpose : 
This  power  is  necessarily  exclusive.  A  practice  has  grown  up  in  some 
quarters  of  appointing  a  building  committee  by  the  district  meeting  to 
superintend  the  erection  of  a  school-house.  So  far  as  a  building  com- 
mittee act  in  aid  of  the  trustees,  by  their  advice  and  personal  service  in 
carrying  into  execution  the  wishes  of  the  inhabitants,  under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  trustees,  there  is  no  objection.  But  the  trustees  alone  have 
the  power  to  bind  the  district  by  a  contract,  written  or  verbal,  and  the 
district  cannot  supersede  them  by  a  building  committee  or  any  other 
agents.  (See  Digest,  pp.  17,  29  and  30,  ante.)  It  is  in  the  power  of  the 
inhabitants,  through  the  agency  of  a  committee  or  otherwise,  to  pro- 
cure plans  and  specifications,  to  the  minutest  detail,  for  a  school-house  or 
other  mechanical  structure  in  contemplation.  They  may  in  district  meet- 
ing select  among  those  thus  procured,  and  may,  by  the  resolution  autho- 
rizing the  building,  limit  the  power  to  making  a  contract  according  to 
the  plan  and  specifications  adopted.  This  is  the  only  method  of  con- 
trolling the  discretion  of  the  trustees  in  the  matter.  It  rests  with  the 
trustees  to  accept  or  reject  the  work,  unless  the  inhabitants,  in  the  vote 
authorizing  the  building,  have  appointed  or  provided  for  the  appoint- 
ing of  other  arbiters.  This  they  may  do  by  directing  it  to  be  inserted 
in  the  contract  with  the  builder,  that  the  sufficiency  of  the  materials 
and  workmanship  under  the  contract  shall  be  determined  by  persons 
named  in  the  resolution,  with  the  power  to  determine  what  sum  shall 
be  deducted  as  damages  from  the  contract  price,  or  to  reject  it  wholly ; 
or  by  nominating  in  the  resolution  an  arbitrator  on  the  part  of  the  dis- 
trict, and  requiring  the  builder  to  nominate  another,  with  power  to  the 
two  to  choose  an  umpire  in  case  of  disagreement,  such  arbitrators  to  assess 
damages  or  reject  the  work  entirely,  and  securing  to  the  trustees  in  the 
latter  case  the  right  to  remove  the  building  from  the  site  at  the  expense 
of  the  builder,  unless  he  removes  it  himself  upon  notice  to  do  so. 

A  stringent  contract,  which  should  in  all  cases  be  in  writing,  with 
such  provisions  for  the  summary  adjustment  of  any  questions  which  may 
arise  under  it,  will  relieve  the  trustees  from  much  personal  responsibility 
and  trouble,  as  well  as  protect  the  district  from  quarrels  and  litigation, 
which  in  any  event  are  disastrous. 

6.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  district  school-house  : 
The  trustees  are  charged  with  the  custody  of  the  school-house  for  the 
purpose  of  public  instruction;  and  it  is  their  duty  to  exercise  such  a 
general  supervision  over  its  care  and  management  as  that  the  instruc- 
tion of  the  pupils  in  the  school  shall  not  be  embarrassed  by  any  use  of 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  247 

the  house  other  than  for  school  purposes,  and  that  the  property  of  the 
district,  and  the  furniture,  books  and  papers  belonging  to  the  school  or 
the  pupils,  shall  not  be  destroyed  or  injured.  Any  use  of  the  house  in 
subordination  to  these  restrictions,  and  not  inconsistent  with  the  main 
purposes  for  which  it  was  designed,  may  be  allowed  by  the  trustees, 
with  the  general  consent.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  71.)  In  such  cases, 
however,  it  would  seem  to  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  require  such  a 
remuneration  for  the  use  as  may  be  sufficient  to  clean  the  rooms,  and  to 
indemnify  the  district  against  casual  damage  and  wear.  There  is  no 
good  reason  Avhy  the  expenses  of  the  district  should  not  be  lightened 
by  the  trifling  revenue  derivable  from  the  occasional  use  of  its  house, 
when  not  wanted  for  school  purposes,  and  in  a  manner  not  to  interfere 
with  them.  The  trustees,  however,  cannot  make  any  permanent  con- 
tract for  the  occupation  of  the  school-house.  They  can  simply  give  a 
license,  revocable  at  their  own  discretion,  which  they  cannot  by  con- 
tract foreclose  themselves  frpm  exercising  as  the  public  good  may  require 
at  any  moment.  Strictly  speaking,  they  can  grant  no  right  to  use  the 
district  property  for  any  other  than  educational  purposes ;  they  can  only 
by  their  acquiescence  estop  themselves  from  bringing  an  action  for  the 
act  of  entering  the  school-house,  which  would  otherwise  be  a  trespass. 
Nothing  should  be  tolerated  which  may  give  occasion  to  a  controversy 
among  the  inhabitants. 

As  the  custody  of  the  building  is  vested  in  all  the  trustees,  all  have 
the  right  of  visiting  and  inspecting  it  at  all  times,  and  a  majority  of  the 
trustees  cannot  exclude  the  third. 

7.  To  contract  with  and  employ  all  teachers  in  the  districts  :  The 
power  to  contract  for  the  district  is  a  power  to  contract  with  such 
teachers  only  as  the  law  authorizes  the  inhabitants  to  expect,  teachers 
to  the  payment  of  whose  wages  public  money  may  be  applied  in  reduc- 
tion of  their  rate  bills,  that  is,  teachers  possessing,  at  the  time  of  making 
the  contract,  a  regular  and  valid  certificate  of  qualification.  The 
inhabitants  have  no  power  to  engage  nor  to  discharge  a  teacher.  (Digest, 
p.  38.)  No  one  of  them  can  demand  from  the  teacher  as  a  matter  of 
right  that  the  latter  should  exhibit  his  certificate.  He  has  no  means  of 
knowing,  when  sending  his  children  to  school,  whether  he  subjects 
himself  to  a  rate  bill  for  the  whole  cost  of  tuition,  or  whether  it  is  to  be 
defrayed  in  part  by  public  money,  except  in  the  fact  that  the  trustees 
are  his  agents  for  the  purpose  of  employing  qualified  teachers  and  none 
others.  It  is  a  fraud  upon  the  inhabitants  to  engage  a  teacher  not  then 
possessing  a  certificate,  without  express  notice  to  them  that  until  he 


248  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

shall  obtain  one  the  school  is  to  be  in  effect  a  private  school.  It  is 
difficult  to  find  any  principle  upon  which  the  trustees  can  be  authorized, 
by  levying  a  rate  bill,  or  any  other  official  action,  to  provide  for  the 
payment  of  such  a  teacher.  A  public  officer,  to  justify  the  execution 
of  a  statutory  power,  like  that  of  issuing  a  warrant  to  levy  upon  the 
property  of  a  citizen,  is  bound  to  prove  that  he  has  strictly  pursued  all 
the  steps  preliminary  to  the  vesting  of  the  power.  The  ministerial 
officer  who  executes  the  warrant  is  indeed  protected  by  another  rule, 
for  if  it  is  regular  on  its  face  he  is  not  to  inquire  whether  it  may  not 
be  impeached  by  extrinsic  facts.  The  question  has  not  been  passed  upon 
by  the  courts,  and  it  may  be  premature  to  say  what  influence  the  tolera- 
tion hitherto  of  the  collection  of  rate  bills  for  the  wages  of  unqualified 
teachers  may  have  upon  their  decision  when  it  shall  be  presented.  In 
the  mean  time  the  only  mode  for  trustees  to  secure  themselves  against  a 
dangerous  personal  responsibility  is  to  meet  as  a  board  (Digest,  p.  93) 
and  insist  upon  the  actual  production  of  a  certificate  before  contracting 
with  a  teacher. 

A  practice  has  prevailed  to  a  very  considerable  extent  of  trustees 
engaging  with  a  teacher  that  he  shall  board  with  the  parents  of  the 
children  alternately.  There  is  no  authority  for  such  a  contract,  and  it 
cannot  be  enforced  on  the  inhabitants.  This  compulsory  boarding  gives 
occasion  to  constant  altercation  and  complaint,  which  often  terminates 
in  breaking  up  the  school.  The  best  arrangement  is  to  give  the  teacher 
a  specific  sum  and  let  him  board  himself.  But  there  are  some  districts 
so  destitute  that  it  may  afford  the  inhabitants  considerable  relief  to  be 
permitted  to  board  the  teacher.  In  such  cases  the  object  can  be  obtained 
in  another  way.  Let  the  trustees  contract  with  the  teacher  at  a  specific 
sum  per  week  or  month,  and  they  may  then  agree  with  him  that  if  he 
shall  be  afforded  satisfactory  board  at  the  house  of  any  of  the  inhabi- 
tants, he  will  allow  whatever  sum  may  be  agreed  on  per  week  for  such 
board,  to  be  applied  to  his  wages,  and  will  give  an  order  on  the  trustees 
for  the  amount  to  the  person  with  whom  he  boards  ;  and  the  trustees 
may  then  accept  such  order  from  the  inhabitants,  as  payment  to  that 
extent  upon  his  tuition  bill,  and  deduct  it  from  the  amount  to  be  paid 
the  teacher,  after  having  paid  him  the  whole  of  the  public  money. 

The  amount  of  the  compensation  to  be  paid  to  teachers  is  within  the 
discretion  of  the  trustees  exclusively.  The  inhabitants  have  no  power 
to  control  them  in  this  respect,  or  in  the  selection  of  the  individuals  to 
be  employed,  though  the  trustees  would  act  most  unwisely  in  disregard- 
ing their  preferences  and  wishes,  when  reasonable  and  just.     There  is 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  249 

little  danger  that  they  will  abuse  their  discretion  in  making  the  com- 
pensation too  high.  The  wages  of  teachers  are  generally  quite  inade- 
quate, those  of  females  scandalously  so.  It  is  a  reproach  to  our  civiliza- 
tion that  a  woman  should  earn  less  as  a  teacher  than  she  might  in  a 
cotton  mill  or  as  a  dressmaker,  especially  as  the  qualities  of  her  sex 
admirably  adapt  her  for  the  instruction  of  the  young.  Trustees  may 
be  very  certain  that  in  purchasing  the  services  of  a  teacher,  as  in  every 
other  business  transaction,  the  way  to  get  a  good  article  is  to  offer  a  fair 
price,  and  that  the  most  wretched  economy  in  the  world  is  to  employ 
a  poor  teacher.  They  would  grudge  no  price  to  secure  a  skillful  phy- 
sician to  restore  the  bodily  health  and  vigor  of  their  own  children. 
They  would  never  commit  a  watch  to  a  bungler,  because  he  offered  to 
tinker  at  it  for  slender  pay ;  what  right  have  they  to  deal  more  stingily 
in  selecting  and  paying  the  person  who  is  to  deal  with  an  organization 
so  much  more  delicate  and  intricate  than  a  watch,  as  the  minds  and 
souls  of  the  children  of  an  entire  community,  and  through  whose  igno- 
rance or  error  they  may  imbibe  poison  instead  of  nutriment  or  medicine  ? 

The  following  is  suggested  as  a  proper  form  for  a  contract  to  be  drawn 
up  in  duplicate,  one  copy  to  be  filed  with  the  district  clerk,  the  other 
retained  by  the  teacher,  viz  : 

A.  B.,  having  produced  to  the  trustees  of  District  No.  ,  in  the 

town  of  ,  a  certificate  (or  diploma  of  Normal  School)  found 

in  due  form  to  license  him  to  teach  a  common  school  in  said  district 
(as  first  assistant  or  in  the  primary  department,  as  the  case  may  be,  if 
the  certificate  is  limited),  is  hereby  engaged  for  the  term  of  weeks, 

provided  his  certificate  shall  so  long  continue  in  force,  to  instruct  the 
school  of  said  district  hours  in  each  day,  exclusive  of  Sundays  and 

customary  holidays,  and  except  that  on  Saturdays  he  is  to  teach  but 
hours,  for  the  wages  of  dollars  per  week,  (  whereof  per  week 

is  to  be  paid  by  the  boarding  of  said  teacher  in  the  families  of  such 
inhabitants  as  shall  be  from  time  to  time  designated  by  the  trustees  and 
shall  be  satisfactory  to  said  teacher. ) 

The  said  A.  B.  faithfully  performing  his  duties  as  such  teacher,  the 
trustees  engage  to  exercise  their  legal  powers  in  providing  for  the  pay- 
ment of  his  wages  aforesaid,  by  giving  him  orders  on  the,  supervisor 
(monthly,  or  as  may  be  agreed)  to  the  amount  of  ,  (so  much  of 

the  public  money  appropriated  to  the  term  as  may  be  apportioned  to 
the  teacher  upon  a  fair  division  thereof  among  all  the  teachers  employed 
at  the  same  time)  for  his  whole  term  of  service,  and  in  proportion  for  a 
less  time,  and  at  the  expiration  of  the  term,  upon  being  furnished  by 

[Code.]  32 


250  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

said  teacher  with  entries  of  the  number  of  days  which  the  scholars 
attending  school  shall  have  respectively  attended,  verified  by  his  oath,  to 
make  out  the  necessary  rate  bills  and  tax  lists  for  the  collection  of  the 
residue  of  his  wages. 

Where  a  teacher  was  employed  by  one  of  the  trustees  only,  after 
consulting  the  others  separately,  and  all  three  of  the  trustees  sent 
children  to  the  school,  as  did  the  district  generally,  it  was  held  by  the 
supreme  court  (15  Barb.,  323)  that  having  performed  the  agreement  on 
her  part  she  was  entitled  to  recover  the  compensation,  on  the  ground 
the  action  being  brought  on  an  executed  contract,  "that  where  a  person  is 
employed  for  a  corporation  by  one  assuming  to  act  in  its  behalf,  and 
goes  on  and  renders  the  services  according  to  the  agreement,  with  the 
knowledge  of  its  officers  and  without  notice  that  the  contract  is  not 
recognized  as  valid  and  binding,  such  corporation  will  be  held  to  have 
sanctioned  and  ratified  the  contract.  *  *  Where  the  contract  is  still 
executory,  and  nothing  has  been  done  under  it,  and  the  action  is  to 
recover  damages  merely  for  non-performance,  it  is  for  the  plaintiff  to 
show  a  legal  contract,  binding  upon  the  corporation.  But  this  is  not 
that  case." 

This  is  sufficient  for  the  teacher  while  the  consent  lasts;  but  the  diffi- 
culty in  respect  to  the  trustees  is,  that  those  who  have  given  their 
consent  in  this  irregular  manner  may  revoke  it  and  leave  the  one  who 
made  the  contract  personally  liable  to  damages,  without  any  claim  to 
be  indemnified  by  the  district.     (Digest,  pp.  80,  82,  93  ante) 

A  teacher  once  employed  cannot  be  dismissed,  without  some  violation 
of  the  contract  on  his  part,  during  the  time  for  which  it  was  to  continue. 
(Digest,  pp.  10,  15,  36,  ante.)  A  teacher  who  is  so  unfortunate  as  to 
fail  to  give  satisfaction  to  the  inhabitants  is  still  entitled  to  retain  his 
place,  unless  it  is  forfeited  by  positive  misconduct  such  as  amounts  to  a 
breach  of  the  contract,  or  would  justify  the  annulling  of  his  certificate. 
As  to  the  remedy  where  the  inhabitants  withdraw  their  children  from 
school  without  reasonable  cause,  see  Digest,  ante,  p.  47.  It  must  be  a 
very  clear  case  to  authorize  the  application  of  so  large  a  portion  of  the 
public  money  as  in  that  instance  to  a  single  term.  Difficulties  of  this 
kind  very  seldom  arise,  except  in  consequence  of  a  want  of  harmony 
among  the  trustees,  or  a  wanton  disregard  by  them  of  the  wishes  of  their 
constituents. 

As  to  the  employment  of  a  trustee  as  teacher,  see  Digest,  p.  99.  The 
objections  there  stated  have  considerable  force  in  reference  to  the 
employment  of  any  near  relative  of  a  trustee. 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  251 

8.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers,  when  qualified,  hy  giving  them 
orders  on  the  [supervisor]  for  the  public  money  belonging  to  their  dis- 
trict, so  far  as  such  moneys  shall  be  sufficient  for  that  purpose ;  'and  to 
collect  the  residue  of  such  wages  from  all  persons  liable  therefor :  It 
will  be  observed  that  this  power  is  confined  in  express  terms  to  the  pay- 
ment of  qualified  teachers.  To  pay  public  money  to  any  other  is  a 
misapplication  of  it,  which  renders  the  trustees  personally  liable  to  repay 
the  amount.  [Com.  School  Dec,  213.)  The  public  money  apportioned 
for  the  year  is  to  be  exhausted  in  paying  the  teachers  for  services  ren- 
dered during  that  year.  [Digest,  p.  48.)  The  year  ends  with  the  31st 
of  December,  which  is  ordinarily  in  the  middle  of  a  term,  and  the 
whole  of  the  public  money  of  the  year  should  be  earned,  and  orders 
for  it  drawn,  on  or  before  that  day.  If  it  be  exhausted  previous  to  the 
commencement  of  the  winter  term,  then  an  amount  equal  to  the  wages 
for  so  much  of  that  term  as  precedes  the  first  of  January  must  be  pro- 
vided by  rate  bill  or  other  resources  than  the  public  money.  The  rate 
bill,  however,  is  to  be  predicated  upon  the  attendance  during  the  whole 
term,  and  not  merely  upon  that  previous  to  January  1st.  [Com.  School 
Dec,  232.) 

The  public  money  apportioned  for  teachers'  wages  can  be  applied  to 
no  other  purpose  whatever,  and  therefore  an  order  drawn  upon  the 
supervisor  should  show  upon  its  face  that  it  is  in  compliance  with  the 
statute.     The  form  may  be  as  follows  : 

To  J.  D.,  supervisor  of  the  town  of  : 

Pay  to  A.  B.,  or  order,  dollars  cents,  on  account 

of  wages  earned   by  him  when  duly  qualified   as  a  teacher  in  District 
No.  ,  in  said  town,  between  the  day  of  September  and  the 

25th  December,  1856.     Dated  Dec.  27,  1856. 

E.  F.,  ) 

r«    T)    (        Trustees, 

G.  R,  ]***■  No-        ' 

The  wages  of  a  teacher  include  the  whole  compensation  allowed  him 
for  board,  lodging  or  any  other  object.  In  drawing  an  order  or  a  rate 
bill,  any  sum  allowed  for  board,  <fcc,  should  be  denominated  wages. 
The  order  can  be  drawn  only  in  favor  of  the  teacher.  If  he  desires  to 
apply  the  proceeds  to  the  payment  of  a  private  debt  for  board  or  other 
consideration,  he  can  endorse  it  to  his  creditor,  but  it  is  for  him  and  not 
for  the  trustees  to  distribute  his  wages.  (Digest,  ante,  p.  3.) 


252  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

A  teacher  should  be  paid  promptly.  It  is  often  a  considerable  hard- 
ship for  him  to  wait  for  the  collection  of  a  rate  bill,  and  when  he  has 
furnished  a  properly  attested  attendance  list  there  can  be  no  risk  in  the 
trustees  advancing  the  money  due  him.  [Digest,  p.  105.) 

9.  To  divide  the  public  moneys  received  by  them,  whenever  authorized 
W  a  vote  of  their  district,  into  not  exceeding  two  portions  for  each 
year;  to  assign  and  apply  one  of  such  portions  to  each  term  during 
which  a  school  shall  be  kept  in  such  district,  for  the  payment  of  teach- 
ers' wages  during  such  term,  and  to  collect  the  residue  of  such  wages 
not  paid  by  the  proportion  of  public  money  allotted  for  that  purpose 
from  the  persons  liable  therefor,  as  above  provided  :  Where  the  inhabi- 
tants have  not  made  a  division  of  the  public  money  by  resolution,  the 
trustees  have  the  power  to  make  such  division  as  they  deem  just  and 
expedient.  (Digest,  ante,  pp.  17,  48,  85.)  There  is  a  manifest  propriety 
in  determining  what  proportion  of  the  public  money  shall  be  applied  to 
a  term,  before  the  term  begins,  so  that  each  inhabitant  sending  pupils 
to  the  school  may  know  the  extent  of  the  liability  to  which  he  subjects 
himself  to  be  assessed  upon  a  rate  bill. 

There  are  some  difficulties  inseparable  from  the  fact  that  the  statute 
recognizes  but  two  terms  in  a  year,  while  in  practice  there  is  one  sum- 
mer term  and  parts  of  two  winter  terms.  The  increase  of  the  public 
money  to  be  distributed  under  the  act  of  1856  will  render  them  more 
embarrassing.  Perhaps  the  best  method  of  obviating  these  will  be  to 
procure  a  vote  of  the  inhabitants  in  district  meeting,  assigning  a  portion 
of  the  public  money  to  each  term;  for  example,  one-third  to  the  winter 
and  one-third  to  the  summer  term,  and  leaving  the  residue  to  be  applied 
by  the  trustees  in  their  discretion. 

Strictly  speaking,  the  only  public  moneys  received  by  the  trustees 
are  those  derived  from  the  income  of  local  funds,  the  tuition  bills  of 
non-residents,  and  other  sources  than  the  state  treasury.  All  such 
moneys  applicable  to  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  for  the  term  are, 
by  §  6,  chap.  151  of  1851,  required  to  be  first  applied  before  the  balance 
to  be  raised  by  rate  bill  is  ascertained. 

10.  To  exempt  from  the  payment  of  the  wages  of  teachers,  either  in 
part  or  wholly,  such  indigent  persons  within  the  district  as  they  shall 
think  proper,  in  any  one  quarter  or  term,  and  the  same  shall  be  a  charge 
upon  such  district :  The  power  of  exemption  under  this  clause  is  con- 
fined to  indigent  inhabitants  of  the  district.  It  is  to  be  exercised  at 
the  time  of  making  out  the  rate  bill  for  the  term,  and  is  operative  only 
for  that  term.     The  trustees  must,  before  issuing  their  warrant,  deter- 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  253 

mine  who  arc  proper  persons  to  be  exempted.  They  have  not  the  right 
to  suspend  the  determination  until  the  indigence  of  the  party  has  been 
demonstrated  by  an  unavailing  effort  to  collect  a  rate  bill  by  distraining 
his  property.     For  such  cases  the  law  has  made  a  different  provision. 

In  the  exercise  of  this  power  the  utmost  liberality  compatible  with 
justice  to  the  district  should  be  indulged.  [Digest,  ante,  p.  31.)  It  is 
the  right  of  every  child  to  attend  the  district  school,  and  no  parent 
should  be  permitted  to  withhold  him,  either  from  doubt  of  his  ability  to 
meet  a  rate  bill  without  inconvenience  or  from  that  pardonable  pride 
of  feeling  which  makes  it  humiliating  to  ask  an  exemption.  The 
exemption  is  provided,  not  in  the  interest  of  the  parent,  but  because  the 
interest  of  the  state  requires  that  his  children  should  be  educated.  It  is 
for  the  trustees  to  seek  them  out  and  solicit  their  attendance.  Whenever 
they  have  reason  to  suspect  that  parents  will  refrain  from  sending  them, 
from  apprehension  of  a  rate  bill,  they  would  better  promote  the  objects 
of  their  appointment  by  removing  this  apprehension,  and  that  in  such  a 
manner  as  not  to  wound  the  sensibilities  of  the  parent  by  treating  him 
as  an  object  of  charity,  than  by  permitting  the  places  of  the  children 
in  the  school  to  remain  vacant.  It  is  not  to  be  forgotten  that  the  poor, 
in  giving  up  the  time  and  personal  services  of  their  children,  and  pro- 
viding them  with  food  and  clothing  while  receiving  instruction,  make 
a  contribution  which  is  often  larger,  in  proportion  to  their  means,  than 
the  heaviest  rate  bill  to  a  man  in  easy  circumstances.  Besides,  suppose 
the  parent  is  actuated  by  criminal  penuriousness,  the  child  deserves  none 
the  less  to  be  protected  from  suffering  on  this  account,  and  the  state 
is  not  the  less  injured  by  his  growing  up  an  ignorant  and  therefore  an 
unprofitable  member  of  society. 

11.  To  certify  such  exemptions  and  deliver  the  certificate  thereof  to 
the  clerk  of  the  district  to  be  kept  on  file  in  his  office :  Not  merely  the 
fact,  but  the  amount  of  the  exemption  in  each  case  should  be  stated  in 
the  certificate,  as  the  amount  of  such  exemptions  becomes  a  charg  >  upon 
the  district,  and  the  certificate  is  the  evidence  of  the  trustees'  autho- 
rity to  make  out  a  tax  list  for  the  aggregate  of  such  amounts.  The 
following  is  a  proper  form  : 

The  undersigned,  trustees  of  District  No.         ,  in  the  town  of  , 

hereby  certify  that  at  a  meeting  for  that  purpose,  at  which  all  were  pre- 
sent (or  at  which  A.  B.,  having  been  duly  notified,  failed  to  attend),  the 
following  persons  were  exempted  from  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages, 


254  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

for  the  term  ending  on  the  day  of  ,  to  the  amounts  set 

opposite  to  their  respective  names,  viz : 

Names.  Amount  of  exemptions. 

Peter  Barney, $0  50 

Thomas  Jones, 2  60 

John  Radcliff, 1  84 

Dated  this         day  of  ,  1857. 

A.  B.,  ) 

C.  D.,  >  Trustees. 

E.  F,  ) 

12.  To  ascertain,  by  examination  of  the  school  list  kept  by  such 
teachers,  the  number  of  days  for  which  each  person  not  so  exempted 
shall  be  liable  to  pay  for  instruction,  and  the  amount  payable  by  each 
person  :  The  assessment  to  be  made  under  this  clause  is  for  the  purpose 
of  making  out  a  rate  bill,  and  therefore  relates  only  to  inhabitants  of 
the  district.  (Digest,  ante,  p.  101.)  The  school  lists  may  include  other 
persons,  who  have  contributed  or  are  bound  to  contribute  to  the  funds 
of  the  district  by  the  payment  of  tuition  bills.  The  amount  of  such 
contributions  may  or  may  not  be  graduated  by  the  number  of  days' 
attendance,  according  to  the  contract  made  by  the  trustees  for  admit- 
ting them  to  the  school.  But  as  the  rate  bill  is  to  be  made  out  only 
for  the  balance  required  to  pay  teachers'  wages,  after  applying  the  pub- 
lic moneys  belonging  to  the  district,  and  must  be  made  out  in  propor- 
tion to  the  number  of  days  and  of  children  sent,  and  as  non-residents 
have  no  interest  in  those  public  moneys,  their  dues  for  tuition  are  to  be 
ascertained  and  collected  otherwise  than  by  rate  bill. 

The  method  of  making  the  assessment  is  first  to  add  together  the 
number  of  days  and  half  days'  attendance  (reckoning  two  half  days  as 
one  day)  by  each  child  belonging  to  the  family  of  an  inhabitant,  or  for 
whos  tuition  an  inhabitant  of  the  district  has  made  himself  responsible. 
Thus,  if  one  inhabitant  has  sent  four  children  for  104  days,  he  will  be 
charged  for  410  days,  and  so  on.  Suppose,  upon  adding  up  the  whole 
number  of  days  thus  ascertained,  the  total  is  found  to  be  4,000  for  the 
average  attendance  of  40  scholars  for  the  whole  term,  and  that  the 
amount  due  to  the  teachers,  after  applying  the  proportion  of  public 
money  allotted  to  the  term,  local  funds  and  tuition  bills  of  non- 
residents applicable  to  teachers'  wages,  is  $40 ;  the  proportion  of  $40 
due  for  one  scholar  for  each  day  would  be  one  cent ;  and  this  multi- 
plied by  the  number  of  days  each  scholar  attended  would  give  his  pro- 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  255 

portion ;  and  by  adding  the  proportions  of  each  belonging  to  the  same 
family,  the  amount  due  from  each  person  sending  to  school  is  ascer- 
tained. Some  of  these  may  be  exempted  under  the  previous  clauses, 
and  the  aggregate  of  the  amounts  for  which  they  are  exempted  is  to  be 
raised  by  tax  on  the  property  of  the  district.  Those  remaining,  with 
the  amounts  found  due  from  them  respectively,  are  to  be  inserted  in  the 
rate  bill. 

All  the  children  of  inhabitants  attending  the  district  school  during 
the  same  term  must  be  charged  at  the  same  rate  per  day  for  tuition,  with- 
out regard  to  the  studies  they  may  pursue,  or  to  the  department,  room 
or  school-house  in  which  they  may  attend,  or  to  the  fact  that  the  teachers 
employed  in  their  instruction  may  receive  very  different  rates  of  com- 
pensation, or  that  one  teacher  may  have  been  employed  for  one  portion 
of  the  term  and  one  or  more  others  for  the  remainder.  There  is  to  be 
no  discrimination  in  the  rate  bill  except  that  resulting  from  the  number 
of  days  and  of  children  sent.  [Com.  School  Dec,  p.  208.)  This  rule 
does  not  apply  to  non-residents,  who  may  be  charged  in  proportion  to 
the  cost  of  the  instruction  furnished  them,  as  they  would  be  at  a  private 
school. 

Nor  does  it  apply  where,  after  the  close  of  the  term,  the  same  teacher 
continues  without  any  intermission,  in  consequence  of  a  prolongation  of 
the  period  for  Avhich  he  was  originally  engaged.  (See  Digest,  ante, p.  52.) 
The  limits  of  a  terra  should  be  fixed  in  advance,  so  that  the  inhabitant* 
may  know  the  extent  of  their  responsibility. 

Difficulties  sometimes  arise  in  respect  to  the  liability  of  inhabitants 
for  the  tuition  of  persons  in  their  employment  or  under  their  protection. 
The  general  rule  is,  that  every  head  of  a  household  must  be  supposed 
to  direct  the  conduct  of  its  members,  and  that  he  voluntarily  assumes  the 
legal  responsibility  growing  out  of  their  attendance  upon  a  school.  This 
presumption,  however,  does  not  always  apply.  Thus,  where  a  person  had 
from  charitable  motives  taken  a  poor  family  to  reside  with  him  in  his 
house,  the  children  of  which  attended  the  district  school,  it  Avas  held 
that  he  was  not  liable  for  the  tuition  of  such  indigent  children,  unless 
they  were  sent  to  school  by  him  under  an  express  or  implied  contract 
to  be  responsible  for  such  tuition ;  and  that  if  sent  by  their  parents,  or 
if  they  attended  school  of  their  own  accord,  the  trustees  should  exempt 
the  parents  from  payment  of  the  tuition  bill.  (Per  Spencer,  Supt.,  1840.) 

A  grandfather  is  not  prima  facie  liable  for  the  board  or  schooling  of  a 
grandchild.  He  may,  however,  become  liable,  in  the  same  manner  and 
to  the  same  extent  as  any  individual  who  has  a  youth  residing  with  him 


256  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

whom  lie  supports,  and  suffers  to  go  to  school  without  giving  any  particu- 
lar directions  on  the  subject.  An  implication  would  arise  that  it  was  by 
his  assent.  But  the  father  or  mother  is  prima  facie  liable ;  and  some 
positive  acts  on  the  part  of  the  grandfather  must  be  shown,  amounting 
to  an  assumption  of  liability  on  his  part,  before  he  can  be  held  responsible 
for  the  payment  of  tuition  under  such  circumstances.  (Per  Spencer,  Supt., 
1841 ;  see  also  Digest,  p.  45.) 

In  ascertaining  the  amount  payable  by  each  person,  the  question  is 
often  mooted  whether  the  tuition  bills  of  the  children  for  whom  he  is 
charged  are  to  be  reduced  by  the  application  of  public  money.  The 
statute  in  this  particular  is  to  be  liberally  construed.  It  secures  the 
freedom  of  the  schools,  so  far  as  the  public  money  will  make  them  free) 
to  all  persons  over  five  and  under  twenty-one  years  of  age  residing  in 
the  district,  and  to  all  children  included  in  the  reports  of  the  trustees. 
It  directs  them  to  enumerate  in  their  reports  all  children  who  shall  "  at 
the  date  of  such  report  actually  be  in  the  district,  composing  a  part  of 
the  family  of  their  parents,  guardians  or  employers."  It  recognizes, 
therefore,  a  temporary  residence  for  the  sake  of  employment,  such  as 
would  not  constitute  the  child  an  inhabitant  in  the  ordinary  legal  sense 
of  the  term,  as  entitling  him  or  her  to  the  full  benefits  of  free  education. 
The  question  ordinarily  turns  upon  the  point  whether  the  residence  is 
in  good  faith,  or  whether  it  is  merely  colorable  with  a  view  to  resort  to 
a  school  in  another  district  than  that  in  which  he  would  have  otherwise 
remained  a  resident.  (See  Digest,  p.  91.) 

13.  To  make  out  a  rate  bill  containing  the  name  of  each  person  so 
liable,  and  the  amount  for  which  he  is  liable  ;  and  to  annex  thereto  a 
warrant  for  the  collection  thereof : 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 


251 


Form  of  rate  bill  and  warrant. 
Rate  bill,  containing  the  name  of  each  inhabitant  not  exempted  and  liable 
for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages   in  District  No.  ,  in  the 

town  of  Trenton,  county  of  Oneida,  for  the  term  ending  on  the 
day  of  ,  185     ,  and  the  amount  for  which  he  is  liable. 


NAMES    OP    INHABITANTS 
SENDING  TO  SCHOOL. 

Whole  number 
of  days  sent. 

Amount  for  which 
he  is  liable. 

John  Jackson, 

104 
416 
312 
54 
416 
104 
104 
520 
520 
520 
520 
360 

$1   04 
4   16 

3  12 

0  54 

4  16 

1  04 
0  04 

2  60 

2  60 

5  20 
5  20 

3  60 

paid  $1  to  teacher. 

3,950 

|33  30 

To  the  collector  of  School  District  No.  ,  m  the  town  of  Trenton, 

in  the  county  of  Oneida : 
You  are  hereby  commanded  to  collect,  from  each  of  the  persons  in 
the  annexed  rate  bill  named,  the  several  sums  mentioned  in  the  last 
column  thereof,  with  one  per  cent  on  all  such  sums  as  may  be 
voluntarily  paid  to  you  within  two  weeks  after  the  receipt  of  this 
warrant,  and  with  five  per  cent  on  all  sums  collected  by  you  after  the 
expiration  of  that  time,  for  your  fees,  and  within  thirty  days  after 
receiving  this  warrant  to  pay  the  amount  so  collected  by  you  into  the 
hands  of  the  trustees  of  said  district,  or  one  of  them ;  and  in  case  any 
person  therein  named  shall  neglect  or  refuse  to  pay  the  amount  set 
opposite  his  name  as  aforesaid,  you  are  to  levy  the  same  by  distress  and 
sale  of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  such  person,  except  such  as  are  exempt 
by  section  twenty-two,  article  two,  title  five,  chapter  six,  part  three  of 
the  Revised  Statutes  from  levy  and  sale  under  execution. 

[Code.]  33 


258  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

Given  under  our  hands,  this  day  of  ,  in  the  year  of 

our  Lord,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and 

Trustees. 


The  statute  does  not  require  the  insertion  in  the  rate  bill  of  the  num- 
ber of  days  for  which  the  inhabitants  are  charged,  and  the  first  column 
mio-ht  therefore  be  omitted  without  vitiating  the  warrant.  The  second 
column  should  contain  the  sum  for  which  each  inhabitant  remains 
liable  at  the  time  the  warrant  is  issued,  after  deducting  any  payment 
which  he  may  have  made  to  the  trustees  or  teacher.  In  case  of  such 
a  partial  payment  having  been  made  it  may  be  explained  in  the  margin. 
For  statement  of  the  property  exempt  from  levy  under  the  warrant  to 
collect  a  rate  bill,  see  p.  211,  ante. 

14.  To  deliver  such  rate  bill,  with  the  warrant  annexed,  after  the  same 
shall  have  been  made  out  and  signed  by  them,  to  the  collector  of  the 
district,  who  shall  execute  the  same  in  like  manner  with  other  warrants 
directed  by  such  trustees  to  such  collector  for  the  collection  of  district 
taxes ;  and  the  collector  to  Avhom  any  such  rate  bill  and  warrant  shall  be 
delivered  for  collection  shall  possess  the  same  power,  be  entitled  to  the 
same  fees,  and  subject  to  the  same  restrictions  and  liabilities,  with  their 
bail  and  sureties,  as  by  this  title  is  provided  in  proceedings  to  collect 
school  district  taxes  :  The  collector  is  under  no  legal  obligation  to  give 
notice  that  the  rate  bill  is  in  his  hands,  for  the  purpose  of  receiving 
voluntary  payments;  a  provision  to  that  effect,  formerly  contained  in  the 
statute  of  1847,  having  been  omitted  in  the  subsequent  amendments. 
It  would,  however,  be  commendable  in  him  to  post  a  notice  as  soon  as 
he  receives  the  warrant. 

It  will  be  seen  by  No.  113,  post,  that  the  warrant  for  the  collection 
of  a  rate  bill  is  to  be  executed  in  a  different  manner  than  that  for  a  tax 
in  this  respect,  viz  :  That  certain  property  is  exempt  from  levy  for  a  rate 
bill  which  is  not  exempt  from  levy  and  sale  for  a  tax.  The  language 
of  the  above  clause  has,  however,  been  left  unchanged  in  the  text,  with 
this  explanation. 

Previous  to  1847  the  statute  contained  an  express  provision  requiring 
the  collector  to  execute  a  bond  for  the  faithful  execution  of  the  duties 
of  his  office,  and  making  his  office  vacant  upon  his  omission  to  execute 
6uch  bond  for  ten  days  after  being  required  by  the  trustees  to  do  so 
This  provision  was  dropped  in  the  revision  of  1847,  and  the  trustees 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  259 

huvo  no  power  to  demand  a  bond  from  the  collector.  In  case  of  his 
embezzlement  of  moneys  collected,  he  may  be  removed  from  office  by  the 
State  Superintendent ;  and  the  inhabitants,  by  the  election  of  a  faithless 
officer,  render  themselves  liable  to  a  new  assessment  to  pay  a  second 
time  taxes  and  rate  bills  which  have  been  once  collected.  A  bond 
voluntarily  executed  by  the  collector  and  his  sureties  would  doubtless 
be  valid. 

No.  112.  Any  balance  required  to  be  raised  in  any  school 
district  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  beyond  the  amount 
apportioned  to  such  district  by  the  previous  provisions  of  this 
act,  and  other  public  moneys  belonging  to  the  district  appli- 
cable to  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages,  shall  be  raised  by 
rate  bill,  to  be  made  out  by  the  trustees  against  those  sending 
to  school  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  days  and  of  children 
sent,  to  be  ascertained  by  the  teacher's  list ;  and  in  making 
out  such  rate  bill,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to 
exempt,  either  wholly  or  in  part,  as  they  may  deem  expedient, 
such  indigent  inhabitants  as  may,  in  their  judgment,  be 
entitled  to  such  exemption,  and  the  amount  of  such  exemption 
shall  be  added  to  the  first  tax  list  thereafter  to  be  made  out 
by  the  trustees  for  district  purposes,  or  shall  be  separately 
levied  by  them,  as  they  shall  deem  most  expedient.  (Sec.  6, 
chap.  151  of  1851.) 

No.  113.  The  same  property  which  is  exempt,  by  section 
twenty-two  of  article  two,  title  five,  chapter  six,  part  three 
of  the  Revised  Statutes,  from  levy  and  sale  under  execution, 
shall  be  exempt  from  levy  and  sale  under  any  warrant  to 
collect  any  rate  bill  for  wages  of  teachers  of  common  schools. 
(.Sec.  7,  chap.  151  of  1851.) 

The  articles  exempted  under  this  section  will  be  found  enumerated 
on  page  211,  ante. 

No.  114.  The  trustees  of  any  school  district  may  expend 
in  the  repair  of  the  school-house  a  sum  not  exceeding  ten 
dollars  in  any  one  year,  and  the  same  may  be  levied  and  col- 
lected by  a  separate  tax,  or  added  to  any  tax  authorized  to  be 
levied  and  collected.  (Sec.  9,  chap.  382  of  1849.) 

The  power  to  make  repairs  to  the  extent  of  ten  dollars  in  each  year, 
and  to  collect  the  amount  by  tax,   is  independent  of  any  vote  of  the 


260  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

district.  There  are  very  few  school-houses  which  do  not  annually 
require  repairs  costing  at  least  ten  dollars,  to  maintain  them  in  such  a 
condition  as  the  comfort  and  health  of  the  pupils  demand.  The  trustees 
should  never  permit  any  necessary  repairs  to  remain  undone  a  day 
longer  than  they  can  he  executed  without  dismissing  the  school,  nor 
should  they  hesitate  to  dismiss  the  school  for  a  day  or  two  when  the 
repairs  cannot  be  postponed  without  exposing  the  inmates  to  discomfort. 
It  is  not  necessary  that  the  whole  of  the  ten  dollars  should  he  collected 
at  one  time  or  by  one  tax.  When  any  sum  for  repairs  is  added  to 
another  tax,  the  fact  should  be  distinctly  stated  in  the  heading  of  the 
tax  list,  and  the  amount  specified. 

No.  115.  When  the  necessary  fuel  for  the  school  of  any 
district  shall  not  be  provided,  by  means  of  a  tax  on  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  district  or  otherwise,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the 
trustees  of  the  district  to  provide  the  necessary  fuel,  and  levy 
a  tax  upon  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  to  pay  for  the  same. 
(Sec.  7,  chap.  382  of  1849.) 

This  section  was  substituted  by  the  legislature  in  the  place  of  the  pro- 
visions of  the  act  of  1847,  which  authorized  the  trustees  to  require  the 
inhabitants  to  furnish  fuel  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  children  sent 
by  each.  They  have  no  longer  any  authority  to  require  inhabitants  to 
furnish  fuel,  nor  can  it  be  given  to  them  by  a  vote  of  the  district.  The 
only  authority  given  to  the  district  meeting  upon  the  subject  ie  to  levy  a 
tax  upon  the  property  of  the  taxable  inhabitants,  not  a  rate  bill  upon 
those  sending  to  school  to  furnish  the  house  with  fuel.  It  is  only  by  a 
voluntary  arrangement  that  fuel  can  be  otherwise  provided. 

If  wood  be  furnished  by  the  inhabitants,  or  some  of  them,  under 
such  an  arrangement,  they  may  be  credited  upon  the  tax  list  with  its 
price,  as  agreed  upon  between  the  party  furnishing  it  and  the  trustees. 
If  the  fuel  be  not  supplied  in  this  manner,  or  if  the  quantity  pro- 
vided by  a  tax  voted  by  the  district  meeting  be  insufficient,  it  is  the 
duty  of  the  trustees  to  purchase  what  is  necessary.  The  word  "fuel" 
imports  wood  or  other  material  in  a  state  fit  for  use.  It  is  not  the  duty 
of  the  teacher  or  of  the  pupils  to  cut  or  split  or  in  any  way  to  prepare 
the  materials  for  use.  The  trustees,  therefore,  should  require  the  wood 
to  be  adapted  to  the  fire-place  or  stove,  and  should  make  the  tax  large 
enough  to  furnish  a  supply  of  fuel,  sawed  or  cut  into  suitable  lengths, 
split  and  piled  in  the  wood-house. 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  26 1 

No.  116.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of  school 
districts  to  procure,  for  the  use  of  their  district,  two  bound 
blank  books,  from  time  to  time,  as  shall  be  necessary,  in  one 
of  which  the  accounts  of  all  moneys  received  and  paid  by  the 
trustees,  and  a  statement  of  all  movable  property  belonging 
to  the  district,  shall  be  entered  at  large,  and  signed  by  such 
trustees,  at  or  before  each  annual  meeting  in  such  district ; 
in  the  other  of  the  said  books  the  teachers  shall  enter  the 
names  of  the  scholars  attending  school,  and  the  number  of 
days  they  shall  have  respectively  attended,  and  also  the  days 
on  which  such  school  shall  have  been  inspected  by  the  [school 
commissioner];  which  entries  shall  be  verified  by  the  oath  or 
affirmation  of  the  teachers.  The  said  books  shall  be  preserved 
by  the  trustees  as  the  property  of  the  district,  and  shall  be 
delivered  to  their  successors.  [*Sec.  104,  chap.  480  o/*1847.] 

The  account  to  be  entered  by  the  trustees  should  specify  every  sum 
of  money  received  by  them,  or  any  one  of  them,  in  his  official  capacity, 
from  the  supervisor,  or  on  tax  lists  or  rate  bills,  giving  the  date  when 
and  the  source  whence  received.  On  the  opposite  page  they  should 
credit  themselves  with  every  expenditure  and  payment,  specifying  par- 
ticularly when,  and  to  whom  paid,  and  for  what  purpose,  and  referring 
to  a  proper  voucher,  which  should  be  filed  and  delivered  to  their 
successors. 

On  another  page  they  should  make  an  accurate  inventory  of  all  the 
movable  property  belonging  to  the  district,  such  as  the  library  of  the 
district,  stating  the  number  of  volumes  and  their  condition,  and  giving 
a  catalogue  of  the  books,  wherever  a  general  reference  cannot  properly 
be  made,  as  to  the  1st,  2d,  3d,  &c,  series  of  the  Harper  Library,  or  Nos. 
1,  2,  3,  <fec,  of  the  Harper  Library  or  Family  Library,  &c,  &c,  and  the 
furniture,  appendages  and  apparatus  of  the  school  room,  specifying  each 
article.     The  whole  to  be  followed  by  a  certificate  in  the  following  form  : 

We,  the  subscribers,  trustees  of  District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of 
Trenton,  do  hereby  certify  that  the  preceding,  from  page  to  page  , 
inclusive,  contains  a  true  and  accurate  account  of  all  the  moneys  received 
by  us  for  the  use  of  said  district,  and  of  the  expenditures  thereof,  and  a 
correct  statement  and  inventory  of  all  the  movable  property  belonging 

to  said  district. 

Dated  this  day  of  ,  18     . 


A.  B.,  ) 
C.  D,  > 
E.  F.,  ) 


Trustees. 


262  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

The  teacher's  list,  to  be  kept  in  the  second  book  named,  is  the  basis 
upon  which  rate  bills  are  made  out,  and  by  which  the  sums  to  be  paid 
by  parents  are  to  be  ascertained.  Among  the  first  duties  of  the  trustees 
will  be  that  of  placing  the  book  in  the  hands  of  the  teacher,  and 
directing  him  to  keep  the  list  daily,  and  accurately. 

The  teacher  will  write  the  name  of  each  scholar  on  the  list,  the  first 
day  he  enters  school,  and  note  his  attendance  every  day  during  the 
term.  The  trustees  should  inform  him  that  unless  the  roll  is  correctly 
and  faithfully  kept,  and  handed  to  them  duly  verified  at  the  close  of  the 
.school,  he  will  not  be  entitled  to  call  on  them  for  his  wages ;  for  his  list, 
so  verified,  is  the  onty  legal  authority  upon  which  to  issue  their  warrant. 

The  roll  may  be  in  the  following  form  : 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 


263 


MM 

0*0'* 

•Xnpjumg 

*     H.     H. 

•Xepuj 

„       ^       ^ 

•Xopsanqx 

rH       r*          '; 

•Xcpg.»up3M 

,-•'-,-, 

•Xspsoux 

,-       ,H        ~ 

•Xijpuojv 

,4       W       - 

O        O        IO 

•XcpjIllBS 

He*      H«      Het 

•Xcpuj 

rn       ^       r< 

•Xopsanqx 

,H       „       rH 

•XopsaupaM 

,H          ,H          ~ 

■Xcpsanx 

-          ^          ^ 

•Xupuojv 

~        ^        H 

O        iG>        ""* 

•Ai:]UM|i:s 

HC       *       -,«. 

•Xcpuj 

*        W        ^ 

•Xspsanqx 

n<        -1        rH 

•Xcpsaupa^v 

—     rH        rH 

•Xtjpsanx 

_        rH        rH 

•Xcpuojv 

r-        r- 

■*        O 

•Xwpjnjsg 

I       Ha 

•Xupuj 

rH        rH 

•Xcpsjnqx 

rH        rH 

•Xcpsaupa^v 

rH       rH 

•Xcpsonx 

rH       rH 

•Xcpuoj^ 

:    ^ 

■gM 

«     ■ 

•Xupjiiicg  J     -»      • 

•Xcpuj  |      **       \ 

•Xcpsjnqx  1      **       '• 

•XBpsoupaAl 

—     : 

•Xcpsanx 

-.      : 

•Xtrpuojv 

rH        : 

a 

< 

"a 

g 
ft< 

John  Thompson, 
Mary  Jones,  .... 
V.  M..  Rice.  Jr... 

a 

P 

Not.  1, 1856. 
"     8,    " 
"  16.    " 

2G4 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 


Ruled  and  kept  in  this  manner,  each  page  will  serve  for  a  month,  or 
whole  term.  When  the  teacher  is  furnished  with  a  blank  hook  not 
ruled,  he  should  rule  it  with  care,  and  he  may  find  it  convenient  to 
extend  the  ruling  so  that  each  page  will  contain  blanks  for  as  many 
days  and  weeks  as  there  shall  be  in  the  term  for  which  he  is  employed. 

At  the  close  of  the  term,  a  list  should  be  made  out  by  the  teacher, 
containing  the  names  of  all  the  pupils,  with  the  date  of  their  entrance, 
and  the  number  of  days'  attendance  in  full,  as  follows,  viz  : 


A  list  of  the  scholars  who  attended  the  district  school  of  District 
No.  ,  in  the  town  of  ,  during  the  quarter  or  term  commencing 
the  day  of  ,  185     ,  and  ending  the  day  of  , 

and  the  number  of  days  they  respectively  attended  the  same. 


Time  of  Entrance. 


Names  of  Scholars. 


No.  of  Days'  Attendance. 


Nov.  1,  1856. 
"     8,     " 
"  16,     " 


John  Thompson, 
Mary  Jones, .  — 
V.  M.  Rice,  Jr.,  . 


Twenty -five  and  half  (25^-)  days. 
Twenty-two  (22  )  days. 

Fourteen  and  half      (14£)  days. 


This  list  should  be  made  by  inserting  the  name  of  the  pupil  the  first 
day  of  his  entrance ;  and  the  whole  number  of  days'  attendance  may  be 
inserted,  at  the  close  of  the  term,  from  the  daily  and  weekly  roll. 

At  the  end  of  this  list,  the  following  oath  or  affirmation  should  be 
written : 

V 

A.  B.,  being  duly  sworn  (or  affirmed),  deposes  that  the  foregoing  is  a 
true  and  accurate  list  of  the  names  of  the  scholars  who  attended  the 
district  school  of  District  No.        ,  in  the  town  of  ,  during  the 

quarter  (or   term)    commencing   the         day   of  ,    and    ending 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  265 

the  day  of  ,  and  the  number  of  days   they  respectively 

attended. 

A.  B. 
Sworn  before  me,  this  day  ") 


,  185 


C.  D.,  Justice  of  the  Peace. 


This  affidavit,  or  affirmation,  may  be  certified  by  a  justice  of  the 
peace,  or  commissioner  of  deeds,  judge  of  any  court  of  record,  county 
clerk  or  school  commissioner  to  have  been  taken  before  him. 

An  abstract  of  the  list  must  also  be  made  by  the  teacher  for  the  use 
of  the  trustees,  at  the  end  of  each  term,  showing  the  results  exhibited 
under  the  following  heads,  in  the  following  form  : 


Abstract  of  the  attendance  of  scholars  at  the  district  school  of  District 
No.      ,  in  the  town  of  ,  during  the  term  commencing  the 

day  of  ,  185  ,  and  ending  the  day  of 

Of  scholars  who  attended  one  month  and  less  than  two  months, 
"         "  "  "       two  months  and  less  than  four       " 

"         "  "  "       four  months  and  less  than  six         " 

"         "  "  "       six   months  and  less  than  eight      " 

"         "  "  "       eight  months  and  less  than  ten       " 

"         "  "  "       ten  months  and  less  than  twelve     " 

"         "  "  "       twelve  months, 

The  teacher  should  sign  this  abstract  and  deliver  it  to  the  trustees. 

As  few  terms  of  any  common  school  will  be  longer  than  six  months, 
the  above  form  extends  beyond  what  most  teachers  will  require.  At 
the  close  of  the  year,  the  trustees  will  add  together  and  condense  these 
term  abstracts  into  one,  for  the  whole  year ;  and  then  the  form  beyond 
six  months,  and  up  to  twelve,  may  be  used.  In  adding  up  the  term 
abstracts,  if  John  Thompson's  name  appears  on  two  or  more  terms,  his 
whole  time  must  be  stated  in  the  yearly  abstract  of  the  trustees.  That 
is,  if  John  Thompson  attend,  during  the  first  term,  two  months,  during 
the  second  term,  three  months,  during  the  third  term,  four  months,  he 
must  be  computed  among  the  scholars  enumerated  on  the  line  "  eight 
months  and  less  than  ten."  Care  should  be  taken  not  to  enumerate 
the  same  scholar  more  than  once  in  the  abstract  for  the  year. 

It  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  the  teacher  cannot  be  required  to 
buy  the  lists,  and  the  book  for  his  daily  and  weekly  roll  and  for  the 
final  summary  roll  for  the  term.     It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  furnish 

rCoDE.l  34 


966  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

„hem.     If  they  do  not,  then  the  trustees  cannot  demand  the  list  from 
the  teacher,  and  will  be  personally  responsible  to  him  for  his  wages. 

Hence  the  trustees  have  a  direct  personal  interest  in  providing  the 
lists  and  the  book,  and  the  teacher  in  keeping  them. 

No.  117.  When  the  trustees  of  any  school  district  are 
required  or  authorized  by  law,  or  by  a  vote  of  their  district, 
to  incur  any  expense  for  such  district,  and  when  any  expenses 
incurred  by  them  are  made  by  express  provision  of  law  a 
charge  upon  such  district,  they  may  raise  the  amount  thereof 
by  tax  in  the  same  manner  as  if  the  definite  sum  to  be  raised 
had  been  voted  by  a  district  meeting,  and  the  same  shall  be 
collected  and  paid  over  in  the  same  manner.  ( Sec.  109,  chap. 
480  o/1847.) 

This  provision  first  came  into  force  as  section  14,  chap.  260  of  1841. 
The  supreme  court,  commenting  upon  it,  in  4  Denio,  298,  says :  "  It  is 
said  that  the  statute  ought  to  be  so  construed  as  to  confine  its  opera- 
tions to  small  incidental  expenses  incurred  by  the  trustees.  But  the 
language  is  general,  and  there  is  nothing  which,  upon  any  just  principle 
of  interpretation,  will  warrant  us  in  restricting  the  provisions  to  any 
particular  class  of  expenses."  That  case  was  one  in  which  the  district 
had  voted  to  build  a  school-house,  and  the  materials  and  dimensions 
specified  were  such  as  to  have  the  effect  of  bringing  the  cost  within 
$400,  and  it  was  held  that  "  if  the  district  had  left  the  whole  within  the 
discretion  of  the  trustees,  and  they  had  kept  within  the  four  hundred 
dollars,  the  act  of  1841  would  have  authorized  them  to  levy  the  tax." 
The  object  of  this  section,  however,  is  simply  to  dispense  with  the  neces- 
sity of  fixing  a  definite  amount  to  authorize  the  levying  of  a  tax,  and  it 
has  not  the  effect  of  permitting  the  trustees  to  levy  a  tax,  under  the 
vote  of  a  district  for  expenses  incurred  for  any  purpose  for  which  the  law 
has  not  conferred  the  power  upon  the  inhabitants  of  voting  a  definite 
tax.  If  the  inhabitants  cannot  lay  t.  e  tax  directly,  they  cannot  effect 
the  same  object  by  directing  the  trustees  to  expend  money  or  to  do  acts 
involving  the  expenditure  of  money. 

Among  the  expenses  made  by  express  provision  of  law  a  charge  upon 
the  district,  and  which  the  trustees  are  authorized  to  incur  without  any 
vote  of  their  district,  is  that  of  hiring  temporarily  any  room  or  rooms 
for  the  keeping  of  schools  therein,  whenever  it  shall  be  necessary  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  children.     (See  No.  148,  post.) 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  267 

It  is  believed  that  a  tax  list,  for  any  expense  incurred  under  this  sec- 
tion, may  be  separate,  or  the  amount  may  be  included  in  any  other  tax 
list  necessary  to  be  made  out  at  the  time  when  the  amount  of  such 
expenses  shall  have  been  ascertained.  It  is,  however,  the  duty  of  the 
trustees,  when  practicable,  to  ascertain  the  definite  amount,  and  to  make 
out  the  tax  list  therefor  within  thirty  days  after  the  meeting  at  which 
the  expenditure  may  have  been  authorized.  When  any  tax  under  this 
section  is  included  in  the  same  tax  list  with  others,  the  heading  should 
distinctly  specify  the  amount,  the  object  and  the  authority ;  as  by  say- 
ing, for  example  :  "  Also,  twelve  dollars  for  the  expense  of  temporarily 
hiring  rooms  for  the  keeping  of  schools  therein,  necessary  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  children  in  said  district,  from  the  1st  day  of  May 
to  the  1st  day  of  August,  1857;  also,  eight  dollars  and  ninety-three 
cents  for  the  expenses  incurred  in  grading  and  draining  the  site  of  the 
school-house,  under  the  resolution  of  a  district  meeting  held  April 
12,  1857." 


OF  THE  ASSESSMENT  AND  COLLECTION  OF  DISTRICT 

TAXES. 

No.  118.  In  making  out  a  tax  list,  the  trustees  of  school 
districts  shall  apportion  the  same  on  all  taxable  inhabitants 
of  the  district,  or  corporations  holding  property  therein, 
according  to  the  valuation  of  the  taxable  property  which  shall 
be  owned  or  possessed  by  them  at  the  time  of  making  out 
such  list  within  such  district,  or  partly  within  such  district 
and  partly  in  an  adjoining  district,  and  upon  all  real  estate 
lying  within  the  boundaries  of  such  district,  the  owners  of 
which  shall  be  non-residents,  and  which  shall  be  liable  to 
taxation  for  town  or  county  purposes,  and  shall  be  situated 
within  three  miles  of  the  site  of  the  school-house  in  such  dis- 
trict. But  when  it  shall  be  ascertained  that  the  proportion 
of  any  tax  upon  any  lot,  tract  or  parcel  not  occupied  by  any 
inhabitant  would  not  amount  to  fifty  cents,  the  trustees,  in 
their  discretion,  may  omit  such  lot,  tract  or  parcel  from  the 
tax  list.  (Sec.  85,  chap.  480  </ 1847.) 

The  statute  requires  the  trustees  to  ascertain  and  determine  who  are 
taxable  inhabitants  at  the  time  of  making  out  the  tax  list,  and  to  appor- 
tion the  tax  on  the  persons  and  corporations  then  holding  property  in 
the  district,  without  regard  to  the  time  when  the  same  was  voted,  and 


268  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

without  discrimination  on  account  of  the  purpose  for  which  it  was  voted, 
except  that  in  favor  of  any  inhabitants  under  No.  132,  post.  (See  Digest, 
ante,  p.  39.) 

The  personal  property  of  all  persons  actually  residing  in  the  district 
is  taxable  therein,  wherever  such  personal  property  may  be  situated. 
It  is  also  provided,  by  chap.  37  of  1855,  that  "  all  persons  and  associa- 
tions doing  business  in  the  State  of  New-York,  as  merchants,  bankers  or 
otherwise,  either  as  principals  or  partners,  whether  special  or  otherwise, 
and  not  residents  of  this  state,  shall  be  assessed  and  taxed  on  all  sums 
invested  in  any  manner  in  said  business,  the  same  as  if  they  were  resi- 
dents of  this  state,  and  said  taxes  shall  be  collected  from  the  property 
of  the  firms,  persons  or  associations  to  which  they  severally  belong." 

Non-residents,  taxable  under  the  above  cited  statute,  are  to  be  deemed 
taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district  in  which  they  may  be  doing  business. 
If  the  owners  or  their  agents  become  temporary  sojourners  in  the  state, 
for  the  purpose  of  managing  such  business,  their  residence  for  the  pur- 
pose of  such  taxation  is  defined  in  the  following  statute  : 

"  §  5.  Every  person  shall  be  assessed  in  the  town  or  ward  where  he 
resides  when  the  assessment  is  made,  for  all  personal  estate  owned  by 
him,  including  all  personal  estate  in  his  possession  or  under  his  control 
as  agent,  trustee,  guardian,  executor  or  administrator,  and  in  no  case 
shall  property,  so  held  under  either  of  these  trusts,  be  assessed  against 
any  other  person,  and  in  case  any  person,  possessed  of  such  per- 
sonal estate,  shall  reside  during  any  year  in  which  taxes  may  be  levied, 
in  two  or  more  counties,  towns  or  wards,  his  residence  for  the  purposes 
and  within  the  meaning  of  this  section,  shall  be  deemed  and  held  to  be 
in  the  county,  town  or  ward  in  which  his  principal  business  shall  have 
been  transacted,  but  the  products  of  any  state  of  the  United  States, 
consigned  to  agents  in  any  town  or  ward  of  this  state,  for  sale  on  com- 
mission, for  the  benefit  of  the  owner  thereof,  shall  not  be  assessed  to 
such  agent,  nor  shall  such  agents  or  moneyed  corporations  or  capitalists 
be  liable  to  taxation  under  this  section,  for  any  moneys  in  their  posses- 
sion or  under  their  control  transmitted  to  them  for  the  purposes  of 
investment  or  otherwise."  (Sec.  5,  title  2,  chap.  13,  part  1st  Revised 
Statutes,  as  amended  by  sec.  2,  chap.  176  of  1851.) 

The  Revised  Statutes  "  of  the  assessment  and  collection  of  taxes,"  in 
title  1  of  the  same  chapter  from  which  the  preceding  quotation  is  taken, 
contain  the  following  provisions  : 

"§  2.  The  term  'land,'  as  used  in  this  chapter,  shall  be  construed 
to  include  the  land  itself,  all  buildings  and  other  articles  erected  upon 
or  affixed  to  the  same,  all  trees  and  underwood  growing  thereon,  and  all 
mines,  minerals,  quarries  and  fossils,  in  and  under  the  same,  except 
mines  belonging  to  the  state;  and  the  terms  'real  estate'  and  'real 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  269 

property,'  whenever  they  occur  in  this  chapter,  shall  he  construed  as 
having  the  same  meaning  as  the  term  '  land'  thus  defined. 

"§  3.  The  terms  'personal  estate'  and  'personal  property,'  when- 
ever they  occur  in  this  chapter,  shall  be  construed  to  include  all  house- 
hold furniture,  moneys,  goods,  chattels,  debts  due  from  solvent  debtors, 
whether  on  account,  contract,  note,  bond  or  mortgage,  public  stocks 
and  stocks  in  moneyed  corporations.  They  shall  also  be  construed  to 
include  such  portion  of  the  capital  of  incorporated  companies,  liable  to 
taxation  on  their  capital,  as  shall  not  be  invested  in  real  estate. 

"  §  4.  The  following  property  shall  be  exempt  from  taxation  : 

"  1.  All  property,  real  or  personal,  exempted  from  taxation  by  the  con 
stitution  of  this  state  or  under  the  constitution  of  the  United  States ; 

"  2.  All  lands  belonging  to  this  state  or  the  United  States ; 

"  3.  Every  building  erected  for  the  use   of  a  college,  incorporated 

academy  or  other  seminary  of  learning ;  every  building  for  public  wor- 

^ship,   every  school-house,   court-house   and  jail ;    and  the  several   lots 

whereon  such  buildings  are  situated,  and  the  furniture  belonging  to  each 

of  them ; 

"  4.  Every  poor-house,  alms-house,  house  of  industry,  and  every  house 
belonging  to  a  company  incorporated  for  the  reformation  of  offenders, 
and  the  real  and  personal  property  belonging  to  or  connected  with  the 
same ; 

"  5.  The  real  and  personal  property  of  every  public  library ; 

"6.  All  stocks  owned  by  the  state  or  by  literary  or  charitable  institu- 
tions ; 

"  7.  The  personal  estate  of  every  incorporated  company  not  made 
liable  to  taxation  on  its  capital  in  the  fourth  title  of  this  chapter ; 

"  8.  The  personal  property  of  every  minister  of  the  gospel,  or  priest, 
of  any  denomination ;  and  the  real  estate  of  such  minister,  or  priest, 
when  occupied  by  him,  provided  such  real  and  personal  estate  do  not 
exceed  in  value  one  thousand  five  hundred  dollars ;  and 

"9.  All  property  exempted  by  law  from  execution. 

"§  5.  If  the  real  and  personal  estate,  or  either  of  them,  of  any 
minister  or  priest  exceed  the  value  of  one  thousand  five  hundred  dol- 
lars, that  sum  shall  be  deducted  from  the  valuation  of  his  property,  and 
the  residue  shall  be  liable  to  taxation. 

"  §  6.  Lands  sold  by  the  state,  though  not  granted  or  conveyed,  shall 
be  assessed  in  the  same  manner  as  if  actually  conveyed. 

"  §  7.  The  owner  or  holder  of  stock  in  any  incorporated  company, 
liable  to  taxation  on  its  capital  shall  not  be  taxed  as  an  individual  for 
such  stock." 

It  is  also  provided  by  §  5,  chap.  546  of  1855,  that  "toll-houses  and 
other  fixtures,  and  all  property  belonging  to  any  plank  or  turnpike  road 
company,  shall  be  exempt  from  assessment  and  taxation  for  any  purpose 
whatever,  until  the  surplus  annual  receipts  of  tolls  on  their  respective 
roads,  over  necessary  repairs,  and  a  suitable  reserve  fund  for  repairs  and 
relaying  of  plank,  shall  exceed  seven  per  cent  per  annum  on  the  first 


2^0  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

cost  of  such  road.  In  case  of  any  disagreement  between  the  assessors 
of  any  town,  village  or  city  and  any  such  company  concerning  such 
exemption  claimed,  said  company  may  appeal  to  the  county  judge 
of  the  county  in  which  such  assessment  is  proposed  to  he  made,  who 
shall,  after  due  notice  to  the  appealing  party  of  such  appeal,  examine 
the  books  and  vouchers  of  such  company,  and  take  such  further  proofs 
as  he  shall  deem  proper,  and  shall  decide  whether  such  company  is 
liable  to  taxation  under  the  section,  and  his  decision  shall  be  final." 
(Session  Laws  of  1855,  p.  1044.) 

Subsequent  statutes  have  added  to  the  enumeration  of  personal 
property  above  given,  the  rents  reserved  on  certain  leases  and  certain 
debts  due  to  non-residents  of  the  United  States,  as  follows : 

"8  1.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  assessors  of  each  town  and  ward,  « 
while  engaged  in  ascertaining  the  taxable  property  therein,  by  diligent 
inquiry  to  ascertain  the  amount  of  rents  reserved  in  any  leases  in  fee, 
or  for  one  or  more  lives,  or  for  a  term  of  years  exceeding  twenty-one 
years,  and  chargeable  upon  lands  within  such  town  or  ward,  which  rents 
shall  be  assessed,  to  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to  receive  the  same, 
as  personal  estate,  which  it  is  hereby  declared  to  be  for  the  purpose  of 
taxation  under  this  act,  at  a  principal  sum,  the  interest  of  which  at  the 
legal  rate  per  annum  shall  produce  a  sum  equal  to  such  annual  rents ; 
and  in  case  such  rents  are  payable  in  any  other  thing  except  money, 
the  value  of  such  annual  rents  in  money  shall  be  ascertained  by  the 
assessors,  and  the  same  shall  be  assessed  in  manner  aforesaid.  (Laws  of 
1846,  chap.  327,  §  1,  p.  466.) 

"  §  2.  The  board  of  supervisors  in  each  county  shall  assess  the  taxes, 
to  be  raised  for  town,  county  and  state  purposes,  upon  the  person  or 
persons  entitled  to  receive  such  rents,  within  the  town  or  ward  where 
the  lands  upon  which  such  rents  are  reserved  and  situated,  in  the  same 
manner  and  to  the  same  extent  as  any  personal  estate  of  the  inhabitants 
of  such  town."  (Same  chap.,  §  2,  p.  467.) 

Under  this  statute  it  has  been  decided  (4  Barb.,  12)  that  "The  tax 
is  to  be  assessed  in  the  town  where  the  lands  lie.  In  this  respect  it  is 
like  a  tax  on  real  estate,  and  not  like  that  on  personal  estate,  which 
follows  the  residence  of  the  person  whose  property  is  assessed."  In  that 
case  it  was  held  that  the  valuation  of  the  assessors  might  be  corrected 
by  the  affidavit  of  the  person  assessed,  and,  as  was  also  held  in  7  Barb., 
251,  that  all  leases  are  included  within  the  act  which  originally  had  more 
than  twenty-one  years  to  run,  notwithstanding  the  term  remaining 
unexpired  at  the  time  the  assessment  is  made  may  be  less  than  twenty- 
one  years;  in  other  words,  the  rents  reserved  under  such  a  lease 
continue  to  be  taxable  till  the  expiration  of  the  term.  It  was  held,  in 
8  Barb.,  23,  that  the  tenant  was  not  liable  to  pay  to  the  landlord  taxes 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  271 

assessed  upon  such  rents  under  a  lease  in  perpetuity,  though  the  lease 
contained  a  covenant  binding  the  tenant  to  pay  any  taxes  assessed  upon 
the  premises  or  upon  the  landlord,  his  heirs,  <fcc.,  for  and  in  respect  to 
the  premises. 

"  §  1.  All  debts,  owing  by  inhabitants  of  this  state  to  persons  not 
residing  within  the  United  States,  for  the  purchase  of  any  real  estate 
shall  be  deemed  personal  property,  within  the  town  or  county  where 
the  debtor  resides,  and  as  such  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  in  the  same 
manner  and  to  the  same  extent  as  the  personal  estate  of  citizens  of  this 
state."  {Laws  of  1851,  chap.  37l,j9.  721.) 

The  debt  taxable  under  this  section  must  be  for  the  purchase  of  real 
estate,  and  is  to  be  taxed  in  the  district  where  the  debtor  resides,  irre- 
spective of  the  fact  that  the  real  estate  may  lie  elsewhere. 

In  regard  to  real  estate,  they  are  taxable  inhabitants  who,  living  in 
the  district,  own  or  possess  any  land  therein,  that  is  to  say,  all  persons 
who  have  the  general  property  in  the  soil ;  and  all  persons  who  occupy 
it  as  tenants  having  a  temporary  right  to  its  possession  under  a  landlord. 
The  latter,  although  only  tenants  at  will,  may  be  assessed  for  the  land 
in  their  occupation,  as  appears  from  No.  119,  post.  The  distinction  is 
between  a  tenant,  for  however  brief  a  period,  who  occupies  the  land  for 
his  own  profit  and  is  entitled  to  a  notice  to  quit  before  he  can  be 
divested,  and  a  mere  agent  or  servant,  managing  the  land  or  employed 
upon  it  for  the  profit  of  another,  under  wages  and  without  any  title  to 
the  possession  of  the  land  or  to  its  products.  In  respect  to  land  within 
the  district  occupied  by  such  agents,  the  employer,  whether  holding 
the  fee  or  a  leasehold  estate,  and  though  residing  outside  of  the  district, 
is  declared  by  No.  120,  post,  to  be  a  taxable  inhabitant  in  respect  to 
the  liability  of  such  property  to  taxation,  in  the  same  manner  as  if  he 
actually  resided  within  its  bounds. 

After  completing  the  enumeration  of  taxable  inhabitants  as  defined  by 
the  various  provisions  above  cited,  and  which  may  include  sundry  persons 
not  residing  in  the  district,  the  trustees  are  to  inquire  whether  there  are 
any  lands  lying  within  the  boundaries  of  such  district  which  are  liable 
to  taxation  for  town  or  county  purposes,  and  are  situated  within  three 
miles  of  the  site  of  the  school-house,  the  owners  of  which  are  non- 
residents, and  which  lands  are  not  occupied  by  a  tenant  (who  would 
himself  be  taxable)  or  improved  by  an  agent  or  servant,  whose  occupation 
would  render  the  owner  not  a  non-resident,  in  the  sense  of  the  law  for 
the  purpose  of  taxation,  although  in  fact  residing  in  some  other  district. 
The  following  directions  to  the  assessors  in  reference  to  the  mode  of 
designating  the  lands  of  non-residents,  in  tit.  2,  chap.  13,  1st  part  of  the 


2*72 


DISTRICT  TAXES. 


Revised  Statutes  (and  which  are  of  course  to  be  followed  by  trustees 
when  they  find  it  necessary  to  make  an  original  assessment)  show  that 
it  is  only  unoccupied  land  which  is  to  be  so  regarded : 

"§  11.  The  lands  of  non-residents  shall  be  designated  in  the  same 
assessment  roll,  but  in  a  part  thereof  separate  from  the  other  assess- 
ments, and  in  the  manner  prescribed  in  the  two  following  sections : 

"  §  12.  If  the  land  to  be  assessed  be  a  tract  which  is  subdivided  into 
lots,  or  be  part  of  a  tract  which  is  so  subdivided,  the  assessors  shall 
proceed  as  follows : 

"  1.  They  shall  designate  it  by  its  name,  if  known  by  one,  or  if  it  be 
not  distinguished  by  a  name,  or  the  name  be  unknown,  they  shall  state 
by  what  other  lands  it  is  bounded ; 

"  2.  If  they  can  obtain  correct  information  of  the  subdivisions,  they 
shall  put  down  in  their  assessment  rolls,  and  in  a  first  column,  all 
the  unoccupied  lots  in  their  town  or  ward,  owned  by  non-residents,  by 
their  numbers  alone  and  without  the  name  of  their  owners,  beginning 
at  the  lowest  number  and  proceeding  in  numerical  order  to  the  highest; 

"  3.  In  the  second  column,  and  opposite  to  the  number  of  each  lot, 
they  shall  set  down  the  quantity  of  land  therein  liable  to  taxation ; 

"  4.  In  a  third  column,  and  opposite  to  the  quantity,  they  shall  set 
down  the  valuation  of  such  quantity  ; 

"  5.  If  such  quantity  be  a  full  lot,  it  shall  be  designated  by  the  number 
alone ;  if  it  be  a  part  of  a  lot,  the  part  must  be  designated  by  bounda- 
ries, or  in  some  other  way  by  which  it  may  be  known. 

"  §  13.  If  the  land  so  to  be  assessed  be  a  tract  which  is  not  subdivided, 
or  if  its  subdivisions  cannot  be  ascertained  by  the  assessors,  they  shall 
proceed  as  follows : 

"  1.  They  shall  enter  in  their  roll  the  name  or  boundaries  thereof,  as 
above  directed,  and  certify  in  the  roll  that  such  tract  is  not  subdivided, 
or  that  they  cannot  obtain  correct  information  of  the  subdivisions,  as 
the  case  may  be ; 

"  2.  They  shall  set  down  in  the  proper  column  the  quantity  and  valua- 
tion, as  above  directed ; 

"  3.  If  the  quantity  to  be  assessed  be  the  whole  tract,  such  description 
by  its  name  or  boundaries  will  be  sufficient;  but  if  a  part  only  is 
liable  to  taxation,  that  part,  or  the  part  not  liable,  must  be  particularly 
described ; 

"  4.  If  any  part  of  such  tract  be  settled  and  occupied  by  a  resident  of 
the  town  or  ward,  the  assessors  shall  except  such  part  from  their  assess- 
ment of  the  whole  tract,  and  shall  assess  it  as  other  occupied  lands  are 
assessed." 

The  residue  of  the  section  relates  to  the  making  of  a  map,  which  is 
supposed  not  to  be  applicable  to  trustees  of  school  districts ;  if  a  map  is 
already  on  file,  the  trustees  may  refer  to  it  in  aid  of  their  descriptions. 

Without  amending  the  sections  above  quoted,  the  legislature,  by  §  1, 
chap.  176  of  1851,  declared  that  "Land  occupied  by  a  person  other 
than  the  owner  may  be  assessed  to  the  owner  or  occupant,  or  as  non- 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  273 

resident  land."  It  is  not  easy  to  reconcile  the  apparent  conflict ;  and 
as  the  statute  last  mentioned  is  merely  permissive,  it  will  he  safest  for 
trustees  to  treat  as  non-resident  lands  only  those  which  are  unoccupied, 
or,  at  most,  so  occupied  that  there  is  no  prospect  of  collecting  the  tax 
otherwise  than  by  the  sale  of  the  land. 

It  is  the  general  rule  that,  if  "  assessors  should  assume  to  assess  land 
lying  in  another  town  or  ward,  their  act  would  unquestionably  be  void 
for  want  of  jurisdiction."  (7  Barb.,  129.)  The  same  general  rule 
applies  to  trustees  in  making  an  original  assessment,  or  in  selecting 
from  the  town  assessment  roll  the  lands  to  be  included  in  a  district  tax 
list.  (See  Digest,  ante,  pp,  93,  100.)  To  make  an  assessment  legal, 
they  must  have  jurisdiction  of  the  particular  case.  If  they  transcend 
the  limits  of  their  authority,  and  undertake  to  assess  property  exempt 
by  statute,  they  cease  to  be  judges,  and  are  responsible  for  all  the  con- 
sequences. A  public  officer  is  not  responsible,  in  a  civil  suit,  for  a  judicial 
determination  in  a  matter  over  which  he  had  jurisdiction,  however 
erroneous  it  may  be,  but  no  officer  can  acquire  jurisdiction  by  deciding 
that  he  has  it.  (5  Barb.,  611;  and  see  19  Barb.,  22.)  The  statute 
gives  them  jurisdiction,  as  to  land  lying  outside  of  the  territorial  limits 
of  their  district,  only  by  directing  them  to  apportion  the  tax  "  accord- 
ing to  the  valuation  of  the  taxable  property  which  shall  be  owned  or 
possessed  by  them  (taxable  inhabitants)  at  the  time  of  making  out  such 
list  within  such  a  district,  or  partly  within  such  district  and  partly 
taithin  an  adjoining  districtT  The  statute  evidently  contemplates  a 
single  paicel  of  land,  in  the  possession  of  a  single  occupant,  which  is 
intersected  by  the  boundary  line  of  two  districts.  If  the  possession  is 
severed,  as  if  the  land  is  owned  by  the  same  person,  but  the  part  within 
the  district  is  occupied  by  the  owner  and  that  which  lies  outside  the 
district  by  a  tenant,  or  vice  versa,  or  if  the  respective  parts  are  occupied 
by  different  tenants  of  the  same  owner,  or  if  one  of  them  only  is  occu- 
pied and  the  other  is  vacant  and  unimproved,  then  the  respective  par- 
cels are  to  be  taxed,  each  in  the  district  within  whose  boundaries  it  is 
actually  contained.  So,  if  one  of  the  parcels  is  occupied  by  a  person  as 
owner,  and  the  other  is  also  occupied  by  him  as  tenant  of  a  third  person, 
the  parts  must  be  taxed  in  the  districts  containing  them  respectively, 
for  the  trustees  of  the  district  containing  the  portion  under  lease  have 
the  right  to  assess  it  to  the  owner,  disregarding  the  occupant.  The 
statute,  moreover,  requires  something  more  than  the  imaginary  contact 
of  the  two  parcels  in  a  mathematical  point,  as  where  they  have  only  an 
angle  in  common.     They  should  be  so  connected  as  to  have  at  least  a 

[Code.]  35 


274  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

line  of  contact,  and  not  a  mere  point.  Where,  however,  two  parcels  in 
the  possession  of  the  same  owner  are  separated  only  by  a  public  high- 
way, the  fee  of  which  he  owns,  subject  to  the  right  of  passage  in  the 
public,  this  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  preventing  their  contact. 

There  are  serious  difficulties  growing  out  of  the  fact  that  the  statute, 
under  the  most  restricted  interpretation  that  can  be  put  upon  it,  some- 
times permits  the  resources  of  a  district  to  be  weakened  by  the  purchase 
of  a  part  of  its  territory  by  the  inhabitants  of  an  adjoining  district. 
Though  the  district  boundaries  are  not  thereby  altered,  yet,  for  the 
eminently  practical  object  of  taxation,  the  result  is  the  same  as  if  they 
were.  Whenever  this  can  be  prevented  by  a  voluntary  arrangement 
between  the  seller,  purchaser  and  trustees  of  the  respective  districts,  by 
which  the  land  shall  be  granted  subject  to  taxation  in  the  district  in 
which  it  lies,  by  express  reservation  in  the  deed,  it  may  prevent  a  ques- 
tion which  is  much  more  troublesome  if  postponed  until  the  levying 
of  an  extraordinary  tax,  such  as  that  for  building  a  school-house. 

In  respect  to  property  exempt  from  taxation,  it  has  been  decided  that 
a  minister  of  the  gospel,  or  priest,  to  bring  himself  within  the  exemp- 
tion, must  show  that  the  value  of  both  his  real  and  personal  property 
did  not  exceed  $1500,  and  it  seems  that  only  that  sum  is  to  be  deducted 
from  the  valuation  of  both,  and  not  $1500  from  the  valuation  of  each, 
if  each  exceeded  that  amount.  (5  Barb.,  609.)  The  latter  point, 
however,  was  not  necessarily  involved  in  the  decision. 

The  land  owned  by  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  if  rented,  can  be  taxed 
to  the  tenant.  It  is  exempt  from  taxation  to  a  certain  extent,  only 
when  occupied  by  such  minister.  If,  however,  the  occupant  is  the  agent 
merely  of  the  minister,  so  as  to  render  it  necessary  to  make  out  the 
assessment  against  the  latter  as  owner,  the  property  is  then  exempt. 

Land  occupied  by  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  as  tenant,  has  been  held 
exempt  to  the  amount  of  $1500,  under  the  provision  above  quoted. 
(Com.  School  Dec,  61.)  The  exemption  is  personal  to  the  minister, 
and  does  not  avail  the  owner. 

The  court  of  appeals  held,  in  3  Kernan,  220,  that  the  school-houses 
referred  to  in  the  statute,  exempting  property  from  taxation,  are  those 
used  for  the  public  common  schools,  and  that  buildings  erected  and 
used  for  private  unincorporated  seminaries  of  learning,  or  for  boarding 
schools,  are  not  exempt — overruling  a  dictum  in  1  Seld.,  3*76. 

No.  1 19.  Any  person  working  land,  under  a  contract  for  a 
share  of  the  produce  of  such  land,  shall  be  deemed  the  pos- 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  275 

sessor,  so  far  as  to  render  him  liable  to  taxation  therefor  in 
the  district  where  such  land  is  situate.  ( Sec.  86,  chap.  480 
of  1847.) 

The  meaning  of  this  section  is  believed  to  be,  that  a  tenant,  working 
land  and  paying  a  share  of  the  produce  as  rent,  is  taxable,  and  not  that 
a  servant  or  agent  is  taxable  who  agrees  to  take  a  share  of  the  produce 
as  his  wages  for  working  the  land.  It  may  sometimes  be  a  little  diffi- 
cult to  ascertain  whether  the  relation  is  that  of  landlord  and  tenant,  or 
that  of  master  and  servant.  (15  Barb.,  591.)  It  being  the  policy  of 
the  law  (as  will  be  apparent  from  No.  121)  that  a  landlord  leasing  for 
a  short  term  should  pay  the  school  taxes  for  permanent  objects,  unless 
there  is  an  express  agreement  to  the  contrary,  it  will  be  safest  in  cases 
of  doubt  to  avoid  the  question  by  assessing  the  owner. 

No.  120.  Every  person  owning  or  holding  any  real  property 
within  any  school  district,  who  shall  improve  and  occupy  the 
same  by  his  agent  or  servant,  shall,  in  respect  to  the  liability 
of  such  property  to  taxation,  be  considered  a  taxable  inhabi- 
tant of  such  district,  in  the  same  manner  as  if  he  actually 
resided  therein.  (Sec.  87.  chap.  480  o/:1847.) 

It  is  not  necessary  that  the  agent  or  servant  should  reside  on  the 
land,  in  order  to  render  the  owner  a  taxable  inhabitant.  The  section 
was  intended  to  prevent  the  necessity  of  resorting  to  a  sale  of  the  land, 
and  to  authorize  the  collector  to  levy,  under  his  warrant,  upon  the  per- 
sonal property  of  an  owner  of  land  not  residing  in  the  district,  but 
managing  the  land  himself,  or  by  agents  or  workmen,  instead  of  renting 
it.  If  the  land  be  occupied  by  tenants  or  sub-tenants,  they  and  not  the 
non-resident  owner  are  to  be  taxed  for  the  parts  occupied  by  them 
respectively,  They  are  for  the  time  being  owners  (8  Wend.,  518),  and, 
although  they  too  should  not  reside  on  the  land,  are  made  taxable 
inhabitants,  if  they  improve  it.  It  is  very  plain  that,  where  land  winch 
comes  within  the  description  of  the  preceding  section  is  situated  partly 
in  one  district  and  partly  in  an  adjoining  one,  the  owner,  although  a 
resident  of  neither,  is  a  taxable  inhabitant  of  both,  in  respect  to  the 
liability  of  the  several  parcels  to  taxation  in  the  district  in  which  each 
is  actually  contained.  Each  district  must  tax  such  owner  only  for  the 
part  actually  within  its  boundaries.  It  is  difficult  to  see  why  it  should 
be  otherwise,  if  he  happens  to  be  a  resident  of  either  district,  inasmuch 
as  No.  118,  ante,  makes  his  liability  to  taxation  depend  not  upon  resi- 


276  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

dence,  but  upon  his  being  a  "  taxable  inhabitant,"  within  the  definition 
of  the  statute. 

No.  121.  Where  any  district  tax,  for  the  purpose  of  pur- 
chasing a  site  for  a  school-house,  or  for  purchasing  or  build- 
ing, keeping  in  repair  or  furnishing  such  school-house  with 
necessary  fuel  and  appendages,  shall  be  lawfully  assessed,  and 
paid  by  any  person  on  account  of  any  real  property  whereof 
he  is  only  tenant  at  will,  or  for  three  years,  or  for  a  less 
period  of  time,  such  tenant  may  charge  the  owner  of  such 
real  estate  with  the  amount  of  the  tax  so  paid  by  him,  unless 
some  agreement  to  the  contrary  shall  have  oeen  made  by  such 
tenant.  (Sec.  88,  chap.  480  o/1847.) 

The  tenant  can  charge  his  landlord  only  with  such  taxes  as  he  may 
have  paid  for  the  specific  purposes  mentioned.  If  taxed  for  the 
exemption  of  indigent  inhabitants  from  rate  bill,  for  the  hire  of  tempo- 
rary school-house  or  rooms,  for  the  purchase  of  maps,  globes,  school 
apparatus,  books  for  library,  for  district  minutes,  and  for  teacher's 
register  of  attendants,  or  any  other  object  than  those  enumerated  in  the 
preceding  section,  he  cannot  set  it  off  against  his  rent  or  make  the 
landlord  repay  him. 

No.  122.  When  any  real  estate  within  a  district,  so  liable 
to  taxation,  shall  not  be  occupied  and  improved  by  the  owner, 
his  servant  or  agent,  and  shall  not  be  possessed  by  any  tenant, 
the  trustees  of  any  district,  at  the  time  of  making  out  any  tax 
list  by  which  any  tax  shall  be  imposed  thereon,  shall  make 
and  insert  in  such  tax  list  a  statement  and  description  of 
every  such  lot,  piece  or  parcel  of  land  so  owned  by  non- 
residents therein,  in  the  same  manner  as  required  by  law  from 
town  assessors  in  making  out  the  assessment  roll  of  their 
towns  ;  and  if  any  such  lot  is  known  to  belong  to  an  incor- 
porated company,  liable  to  taxation  in  such  district,  the  name 
of  such  company  shall  be  specified,  and  the  value  of  such  lot 
or  piece  of  land  shall  be  set  down  opposite  to  such  descrip- 
tion, which  value  shall  be  the  same  that  was  affixed  to  such 
lot  or  piece  of  land  in  the  last  assessment  roll  of  the  town; 
and  if  the  same  was  not  separately  valued  in  such  roll,  then 
it  shall  be  valued  in  proportion  to  the  valuation  which  was 
affixed  in  the  said  assessment  roll  to  the  whole  tract  of  which 
such  lot  or  piece  shall  be  a  part.  (Sec.  89,  chap.  480  o/"1847.) 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  277 

The  directions  of  the  statute  for  the  description  of  non-resident  lands 
have  been  given  at  page  272,  ante.  The  preceding  section  requires, 
in  addition,  that  the  name  of  each' incorporated  company  known  to  be 
the  owner  of  unoccupied  land  shall  be  specified.  The  non-resident 
lands  are  to  be  described  in  a  part  of  the  tax  list  separate  from  the  other 
assessments,  and  the  greatest  care  is  requisite  to  secure  a  minute  com- 
pliance with  the  demands  of  the  law.  The  description  must  be  such 
that  the  state  comptroller  can  perceive  that  it  will  enable  a  purchaser 
at  the  tax  sale  to  locate  the  land  with  certainty,  and  also  enable  the 
non-resident  owner  to  know,  from  such  description  alone,  that  it  is  his 
land  which  has  been  sold,  so  that  he  may  redeem  it. 

It  is  only  real  estate  within  the  district  that  is  to  be  described  as  non- 
resident property ;  and  if  it  be  part  of  a  tract  extending  into  other 
districts,  the  description  in  the  town  assessment  roll  may  not  show  how 
much  is  in  one  district  and  how  much  in  another.  The  trustees  must 
supply  this  defect,  in  making  out  their  tax  list,  by  giving  an  accurate 
description  of  the  boundary  line  of  their  district  which  intersects  any 
unoccupied  lot  or  subdivision  of  a  tract.  The  description  of  each 
parcel  separately  taxed  must  be  such  that  if  that  description,  copied 
literally  from  the  tax  list,  were  inserted  in  a  deed  by  the  comptroller, 
without  adding  any  other  words,  it  would  suffice  to  identify  the  lot 
and  determine  its  boundaries. 

No.  123.  If  any  tax  on  the  real  estate  of  a  non-resident 
mentioned  in  the  tax  list  delivered  to  the  collector  shall  be 
unpaid  at  the  time  he  is  required  by  law  to  return  his  war- 
rant, he  shall  deliver  to  the  trustees  of  such  district  an  account 
of  the  taxes  so  remaining  due,  containing  a  description  of  the 
lots  and  pieces  of  land  upon  which  any  taxes  were  imposed, 
as  the  same  were  stated  in  his  tax  list,  together  with  the 
amount  of  the  tax  assessed  on  each  ;  and  upon  making  oath 
before  any  justice  of  the  peace  or  judge  of  any  court  of  record 
that  the  taxes  mentioned  in  such  account  remain  unpaid,  and 
that  after  diligent  efforts  he  has  been  unable  to  collect  the 
same,  he  shall  be  credited  by  said  trustees  with  the  amount 
thereof.  (Sec.  90,  chap.  480  o/1847.) 

The  description  in  the  collector's  return  must  be  the  same  as  that  in 
the  tax  list.     The  account  should  be  in  substantially  the  following  form  : 


278 


DISTRICT  TAXES. 


Account  of  unpaid  taxes  assessed  upon  the  lauds  of  non-residents  in 
School  District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  ,  county  of  , 

in  a  tax  list  made  out  by  the  trustees  of  said  district,  for 
and  delivered  to  the  collector  on  the         day  of  ,185 


NO.  AND  DESCRIPTION  OF  LOTS  AND 
I'AItTS  OF  LOTS. 


Quant'y  of  land 

therein  liable  to 

taxation. 


Valuation  of 
such  quantity. 


Amount  of 
tax. 


No.  17,  short  tract, 

That  part  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  lot  No.  23, 
short  tract,  which  lies  east  of  a  line  running 
north  43°  west  from  the  southeast  corner  of 
lot  No.  12,  in  the  same  tract,  being  the  dis- 
trict boundary  line, 


2*     « 


825  00 


6  00 


$0  75 


18 


f:i 


County, 
Town  of 

John   Doe,   being  duly  sworn,  deposes  and  says  that  he  is  collector 
of  taxes  in  and  for  School  District  No.         ,  of  the  town  of  , 

aforesaid ;  that  the  foregoing  is  a  true  account  of  the  taxes  remaining 
due  upon  the  real  estate  of  non-residents  in  said  district ;  that  the  taxes 
mentioned  in  such  account  remain  unpaid,  and  that  after  diligent  efforts 
he  has  been  unable  to  collect  the  same. 

JOHN  DOE. 
Sworn  and  subscribed  before  me, 
this  day  of  ,  185  . 

E.  F.,  Justice  of  the  Peace. 


No.  124.  Whenever  the  trustees  of  any  school  district  shall 
receive  such  an  account  of  unpaid  taxes  from  any  collector, 
they  shall  compare  the  same  with  the  original  tax  list,  and  if 
found  to  be  a  true  transcript,  they  shall  add  to  such  account 
a  certificate  to  the  effect  that  they  have  compared  the  same 
with  the  original  tax  list  and  found  it  to  be  correct,  and  shall 
immediately  transmit  such  account,  with  the  affidavit  of  the 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  279 

collector  and  their  certificate,  to  the  treasurer  of  the  county. 
(Sec.  91,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

The  certificate  of  the  trustees  should  be  attached  to  the  affidavit  of 
the  collector,  upon  the  original  account.     It  may  be  as  follows : 

"  The  undersigned,  trustees  of  School  District  No.  ,  in  the  town 

of  ,  county  of  ,  hereby  certify  that  the  preceding  is  an 

account  of  unpaid  taxes  assessed  on  the  real  estate  of  non-residents  in 
said  district,  delivered  to  the  trustees  thereof  by  John  Doe,  collector  of 
taxes  therein,  and  that  we  have  examined  and  compared  the  same  with 
the  original  tax  list  for  and  found  it  to  be 

correct.     Dated  this  day  of  ,185  ." 

This  should  be  signed  by  a  majority,  at  least,  of  the  trustees.  The 
purpose  for  which  the  tax  list  was  made  out  ought  to  be  stated,  so  that 
it  may  appear  to  have  been  for  objects  for  which  taxes  may  be  legally 
imposed  by  a  district  meeting  or  by  the  trustees. 

No.  125.  Out  of  any  moneys  in  the  county  treasury,  raised 
for  contingent  expenses,  the  county  treasurer  shall  pay  to  the 
trustees  of  the  school  district  in  which  such  taxes  were 
imposed  the  amount  thereof  so  returned  as  unpaid.  ( Sec.  92, 
chap.  480  of  1847. ) 

It  is  imperative  upon  the  county  treasurer  to  pay  at  once  the  amount 
of  taxes  of  non-residents  returned  unpaid,  if  there  be  any  money  raised 
for  contingent  expenses  in  the  treasury  and  the  certificate  of  the 
trustees  is  regular  upon  its  face.  If  there  be  no  such  money  in  the 
county  treasury,  it  is  still  his  duty  to  lay  the  account  before  the  board 
of  supervisors,  as  prescribed  in  the  next  section,  that  they  may  raise  it. 
The  remedy  of  the  trustees,  in  case  of  a  refusal  of  the  county  treasurer 
to  pay,  is  by  application  to  the  supreme  court  for  a  writ  of  mandamus. 

No.  126.  Such  account,  affidavit  and  certificate  shall  be 
laid  by  the  county  treasurer  before  the  board  of  supervisors 
of  the  county,  who  shall  cause  the  amount  of  such  unpaid 
taxes,  with  seven  per  cent  of  the  amount  in  addition  thereto, 
to  be  levied  upon  the  lands  of  non-residents  on  which  the 
same  were  imposed,  and  if  imposed  upon  the  lands  of  any 
incorporated  company,  then  upon  such  company,  in  the  same 
manner  that  the  contingent  charges  of  the  county  are  directed 
to  be  levied  and  collected;  and   when  collected,  the  same 


280  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

shall  be  returned  to  the  county  treasury,  to  reimburse  the 
amount  so  advanced,  with  the  expense  of  collection.  (Sec.  93, 
chap.  480  of  1847.) 

This  section  seems  to  contemplate  that  the  supervisors  shall  impose 
any  tax  returned,  with  the  addition  of  seven  per  cent,  upon  the  very 
same  lands  on  which  they  were  charged  by  the  trustees,  and  therefore 
not  to  contemplate  any  correction  of  the  description  by  them.  This  is 
a  reason  for  great  care  on  the  part  of  the  trustees  in  preparing  the 
original  description  in  the  tax  list. 

No.  127.  Any  person  whose  lands  are  included  in  any  such 
account  may  pay  the  tax  assessed  thereon  to  the  county 
treasurer,  at  any  time  before  the  board  of  supervisors  shall 
have  directed  the  same  to  be  levied.  ( Sec.  94,  chap.  480  of 
1847.) 

No.  128.  The  same  proceedings  in  all  respects  shall  be  had 
for  the  collection  of  the  amount  so  directed  to  be  raised  by 
the  board  of  supervisors  as  are  provided  by  law  in  relation  to 
county  taxes ;  and  upon  a  similar  account,  as  in  the  case  of 
county  taxes  of  the  arrears  thereof  uncollected,  being  trans- 
mitted by  the  county  treasurer  to  the  comptroller,  the  same 
shall  be  paid  on  his  warrant  to  the  treasurer  of  the  county 
advancing  the  same  ;  and  the  amount  so  assumed  by  the  state 
shall  be  collected  for  its  benefit,  in  the  manner  prescribed  by 
law  in  respect  to  the  arrears  of  county  taxes  upon  land  of 
non-residents ;  or  if  any  part  of  the  amount  so  assumed  con- 
sisted of  a  tax  upon  any  incorporated  company,  the  same 
proceedings  may  also  be  had  for  the  collection  thereof  as 
provided  by  law  in  respect  to  the  county  taxes  assessed  upon 
such  company.  (Sec.  95,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

No.  129.  In  every  case  where  a  district  embraces  a  part  of 
more  than  one  town,  the  [supervisors]  of  the  towns  so  in  part 
embraced,  upon  application  of  the  trustees  of  such  districts, 
or  of  those  persons  liable  to  pay  taxes  upon  real  property 
therein,  shall  proceed  to  inquire  and  determine  whether  the 
valuation  of  real  property  upon  the  several  assessment  rolls  of 
said  towns  are  substantially  just,  as  compared  with  each 
other,  so  far  as  such  district  is  concerned,  and  if  determined 
not  to  be  so,  they  shall  determine  the  relative  proportion  of 
taxes  that  ought  to  be  assessed  upon  the  real  property  of  the 
parts  of  such  districts  so   lying  in  different  towns,  and  the 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  281 

trustees  of  such  district  shall  thereupon  assess  the  proportion 
of  any  tax  thereafter  to  be  raised,  according  to  the  determi- 
nation of  said  [supervisors],  until  the  same  shall  be  altered 
by  said  [supervisors]  upon  like  application,  using  the  assess- 
ment rolls  of  the  several  towns  to  distribute  the  said  propor- 
tion among  the  persons  liable  to  be  assessed  for  the  same. 
In  cases  where  two  [supervisors]  shall  be  unable  to  agree, 
they  shall  summon  a  [supervisor]  from  some  adjoining  town, 
who  shall  unite  in  such  inquiry  and  determination.  (Sec.  72, 
chap.  480  of  1847 f  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  56.) 

The  supervisors  of  the  towns,  parts  of  which  are  included  in  any  joint 
district,  may  act  under  this  section,  upon  the  written  application  of  its 
trustees  or  taxable  inhabitants.  The  power  would  be  practically  nuga- 
tory, if  its  exercise  depended  upon  the  application  of  a  majority  of  the 
inhabitants.  In  determining  the  proportion  of  taxes  to  be  levied  upon 
the  respective  parts  of  a  joint  district,  the  simplest  form  will  be  to  state 
how  many  cents  in  the  dollar,  of  each  tax,  shall  be  levied  upon  the  real 
property  of  one  part,  and  how  many  upon  the  other.  A  record  of  this 
determination  should  be  made  in  duplicate  or  triplicate,  according  to 
the  number  of  towns ;  each  should  be  signed  by  the  supervisors,  and 
one  copy  filed  in  the  clerk's  office  of  each  town.  It  may  be  in  the  fol- 
lowing form,  and  should  have  annexed  to  it  the  original  application 
upon  which  it  was  made,  evidence  of  which  is  necessary  to  uphold  the 
order.  (21  Barb.,  210.) 

In  the  matter  of  the  equalization  of  assessments  for  school  purposes,  in 

Joint  District  No.         ,  of  the  towns  of  ,  in  county, 

and  ,  in  county. 

Application  having  been  made  to  the  supervisors  of  the  towns 
of  and  ,  by  persons  liable  to  pay  taxes  in  Joint  School 

District  No.  of  said  towns  (or  by  the  trustees),  to  inquire  whether 

the  valuations  of  real  property  upon  the  several  assessment  rolls  of  said 
towns  are  substantially  just,  as  compared  with  each  other,  so  far  as  such 
district  is  concerned,  and  the  said  supervisors  being  unable  to  agree, 
having  summoned  J.  D.,  Esq.,  supervisor  of  the  adjoining  town  of  , 

to  unite  in  such  inquiry,  and  a  meeting  of  said  supervisors  having  been 
held  for  that  purpose,  at  which  were  present  A.  B.  and  C.  D.  (and  E.  F. 
having  been  duly  notified,  failed  to  attend),  and  it  having  been  deter- 
mined that  such  valuations  are  not  substantially  just,  as  compared  with 
each  other,  it  was  then  and  is  hereby  determined  that  the  relative  pro- 

[Code.]  36 


282  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

portion  of  taxes  tliat  ought  to  be  assessed  upon  the  real  property  of 
parts  of  such  districts  lying  in  different  towns  is  as  follows,  viz  :  thirty- 
one  cents  in  each  dollar  to  be  assessed  upon  the  real  property  of  said 
district,  should  be  assessed  upon  the  part  lying  in  the  town  of  , 

and  sixty-nine  cents  in  the  dollar  upon  the  part  lying  in  the  town  of 
Dated  this  day  of  ,185     . 

A.  B.,  Supervisor  of 
C.  D.,  Supervisor  of 

This  determination  does  not  affect  the  assessment  of  personal  pro- 
perty. The  trustees  must,  therefore,  proceed  as  follows  :  Taking  the 
aggregate  of  the  valuations  of  real  and  personal  estate  in  the  district,  as 
ascertained  from  the  town  assessment  rolls  (after  making  any  additions 
of  personal  property  found  proper  by  the  trustees),  they  are  to  deter- 
mine how  much  of  the  tax  is  to  be  assessed  upon  the  personal  and  how 
much  upon  the  real  estate.  It  may  thus,  for  example,  be  found  that  of  a 
tax  of  $400,  $73  will  be  chargeable  on  the  personal  estate.  The  residue, 
$327,  is  then  to  be  assessed,  thirty-one  per  cent  of  it,  or  $101.37,  on 
the  real  property  in  one  town,  and  sixty-nine  per  cent,  or  $225.63,  on 
that  in  the  other,  using  the  assessment  roll  of  each  town  to  determine 
the  proportion  which  each  person  resident  therein  is  to  be  assessed  for 
real  or  personal  property.  [See  Digest,  ante,  p.  101.) 

No.  130.  The  valuations  of  taxable  property  shall  be  ascer- 
tained, so  far  as  possible,  from  the  last  assessment  roll  of  the 
town  ;  and  no  person  shall  be  entitled  to  any  reduction  in 
the  valuation  of  such  property,  as  so  ascertained,  unless  he 
shall  give  notice  of  his  claim  to  such  reduction  to  the  trustees 
of  the  district  before  the  tax  list  shall  be  made  out.  (Sec.  96, 
chap.  480  o/1847.) 

The  first  duty  of  trustees  is  to  determine  who  are  the  taxable  inhabi- 
tants of  the  district.  In  doing  this  they  may  find  some  persons  not 
named  in  the  toAvn  assessment  roll.  Some  of  them  may  be  taxable,  as 
the  possessors  of  property  which  has  been  valued  in  that  roll,  and  which 
belonged  to  other  persons  at  the  time  it  was  made  out.  In  the  valuation 
of  such  property,  the  trustees  are  to  be  governed  by  the  assessment  roll. 
They  are  not  to  reduce  it,  unless  the  new  owner  shall  give  notice  of  his 
claim  to  such  reduction  before  the  tax  list  shall  be  made  out,  and  they 
are  not  to  reduce  it  without  giving  the  notice  provided  by  the  next 
section.     To  reduce   the   valuation  of  one,   is  precisely  equivalent  to 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  283 

raising  that  of  every  other  taxable  inhabitant,  for  it  increases  his  quota 
of  the  tax.  He  cannot  be  subjected  to  such  increase  of  taxation,  beyond 
what  his  share  would  be  according  to  the  last  town  assessment  roll, 
without  being  put  upon  his  guard  by  the  posting  of  a  notice.  (Digest, 
ante,  p.  44;   1  Denio,  '214.) 

Other  persons  may  be  found  to  be  taxable  on  account  of  their  posses- 
sion of  property,  real  or  personal,  for  which  no  person  was  assessed  on 
the  town  assessment  roll.  Such  property  may  be  real  estate  casually 
overlooked  by  the  assessors,  or  purposely  omitted  because  it  was  then 
exempt  by  being  occupied  by  a  minister  of  the  gospel,  or  for  any  other 
reason  ;  or  it  may  consist  in  accessions  to  real  estate  —  to  put  an  uncom- 
mon case :  land  formed  by  the  gradual  washing  up  of  sand  on  the  shore 
of  the  sea  or  of  our  great  lakes,  which  belongs  to  the  owner  of  the  adja- 
cent bank,  or  an  island  formed  in  the  bed  of  a  river  not  navigable, 
which  is  to  be  divided  according  to  the  original  thread  of  the  river 
between  the  proprietors  on  the  opposite  banks,  or  to  him  on  whose  side 
of  the  original  thread  it  lies  (17  Pick.,  41 )  —  or  in  improvements,  such  as 
the  building  of  a  house  or  barn,  not  completed  when  the  town  assess- 
ment was  made.  Or  the  property  may  be  personal,  arising  from  the 
sale  of  real  estate  within  the  district,  or  the  acquisition  of  personal  estate 
by  devise  or  otherwise  to  an  inhabitant  of  the  district,  such  property 
not  being  in  the  district,  but  following  the  person  of  its  owner  for  the 
purpose  of  taxation.  In  all  these  cases,  an  original  valuation  by  the 
trustees  is  to  be  made,  and  a  notice  is  necessary.  Additions  to  the  last 
assessment  roll,  in  consequence  of  buildings  subsequently  erected,  should 
not  be  made  by  the  trustees  until  they  are  so  far  completed  that  their 
value  is  not  contingent  and  uncertain.  (Com.  School  Dec,  194.) 

Trustees  cannot  assess  an  individual  for  personal  propeily,  if  he  has 
been  taxed  for  none  on  the  last  assessment  roll  of  the  town,  on  the  mere 
supposition  that  he  may  have  more  than  his  debts  amount  to.  The 
assessment  roll  of  the  town  settles  the  matter,  and  the  trustees  cannot 
vary  the  amount  but  from  some  knowledge  of  an  alteration  after  that  roll 
was  made  out,  or  to  correct  some  known  and  acknowledged  error. 
(Id.,  342.) 

The  vendor  of  a  farm  remaining  in  possession  is  liable  for  taxes 
assessed  on  it.    (Id.,  83.  but  see  p.  54,  Digest,  ante.) 

If  a  taxable  inhabitant  sells  his  farm  and  remains  in  the  district,  he  is 
liable  to  be  taxed  on  the  amount  of  the  purchase  money  paid,  or  secured 
to  be  paid,  as  personal  property  (unless  he  shows  that,  notwithstanding 
the  increase  of  his  personal  property,  its  value  is  still  exceeded  by  his 


284  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

debts),  and  the  purchaser  is  taxable  for  the  farm  according  to  its 
assessed  value  on  the  last  assessment  roll  of  the  town.  (Id.,  285,  342.) 

Where  land,  owned  by  the  same  person,  is  situated  in  different  dis- 
tricts in  the  same  town,  but  all  included  under  one  assessment  by  the 
town  assessors,  if  all  the  land  is  of  the  same  description,  and  was 
actually  valued  at  the  same  rate  per  acre,  without  any  variation  on 
account  of  improvements  or  otherwise,  or  if  it  appears  on  the  roll  at 
what  rates  the  separate  parts  were  valued,  then  the  valuation  of  the 
portion  situate  in  any  particular  district  may  be  ascertained  by  the 
trustees  from  such  last  assessment  roll.  But  if  the  valuation  by  the 
town  assessor  was  general,  and  if  the  land  was  of  different  degrees  of 
quality  or  value,  or  if  a  dwelling-house  or  other  improvements  are 
situated  in  one  district  and  none  in  another,  a  new  and  original  assess- 
ment must  in  such  case  be  made,  by  the  trustees,  giving  the  notices, 
&c,  and  proceeding  in  the  mode  required  by  law.  (Per  Spencer,  Suj)t., 
Jan.,  1841  ;  and  see  Digest,  p.  17.) 

As  to  what  assessment  roll  the  trustees  are  to  be  governed  by,  see 
p.  104,  ante. 

Where  a  person,  assessed  for  a  greater  number  of  acres  than  his  farm 
contains,  omits  to  claim  a  reduction  when  the  tax  is  assessed  by  the 
trustees,  he  will  not  be  relieved  subsequently  on  appeal.  (  Com.  School 
Dec,  341.) 

No.  131.  In  every  case  where  such  reduction  shall  be  duly 
claimed,  and  in  every  case  where  the  valuation  of  taxable 
property  cannot  be  ascertained  from  the  last  assessment  roll 
of  the  town,  the  trustees  shall  ascertain  the  true  value  of  the 
property  to  be  taxed  from  the  best  evidence  in  their  power, 
giving  notice  to  the  persons  interested,  and  proceeding  in  the 
same  manner  as  the  town  assessors  are  required  by  law  to 
proceed  in  the  valuations  of  taxable  property.  (Sec.  97,  chap. 
480  of  1847.) 

The  trustees,  proceeding  in  the  same  manner  as  town  assessors,  should 
first  ascertain  the  true  value  of  the  property  to  be  taxed,  according  to 
their  judgment.  The  rule  prescribed  by  the  Revised  Statutes,  as 
amended  by  §  3,  chap.  176  of  1851,  is: 

"All  real  and  personal  estate  liable  to  taxation  shall  be  estimated 
and  assessed  by  the  assessors  at  its  full  and  true  value,  as  they  would 
appraise  the  same  in  payment  of  a  just  debt  due  from  a  solvent  debtor." 
(Session  Laws  of  1851,  p.  333.) 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  285 

After  having  completed  a  tax  list,  by  taking  the  valuations  from  the 
town  assessment  roll,  where  it  furnishes  them,  and  having  added  thereto 
such  original  assessments  as  in  their  judgment  are  required,  the  statute 
directs  that  the  assessors  (and  consequently,  by  the  above  sections,  the 
trustees)  "  shall  make  out  one  fair  copy  thereof,  to  be  left  with  one  of 
their  number.  They  shall  also  forthwith  cause  notices  thereof  to  be  put 
up  at  three  or  more  public  places  in  the  district." 

"  Such  notices  shall  set  forth  that  the  assessors  have  completed  their 
assessment  roll,  and  that  a  copy  thereof  is  left  with  one  of  their  number, 
at  a  place  to  be  specified  therein,  where  the  same  may  be  seen  and 
examined  by  any  person  interested,  until  the  third  Tuesday  of  August ; 
and  that  on  that  day  the  assessors  will  meet,  at  a  time  and  place  also  to 
be  specified  in  such  notice,  to  review  their  assessments.  On  the  applica- 
tion of  any  person  conceiving  himself  aggrieved,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the 
said  assessors  on  such  day  to  meet,  at  the  time  and  place  specified,  and 
hear  and  examine  all  complaints  in  relation  to  such  assessments  that 
may  be  brought  before  them ;  and  they  are  hereby  empowered  and  it 
shall  be  their  duty  to  adjourn  from  time  to  time,  as  may  be  necessary,  to 
hear  and  determine  such  complaints."  [Session  Laws  of  1851,  p.  333.) 

The  notice  to  be  given  by  trustees  necessarily  varies  somewhat  from 
that  of  assessors,  and  may  be  in  the  following  form : 

Notice  is  hereby  given,  that  the  trustees  of  School  District  No.  , 

in  the  town  of  ,  have  completed  their  tax  list  to  raise  the  sum  of 

$10  for  repairs  of  school-house,  $8  to  furnish  the  same  with  the  neces- 
sary fuel  (enumerating  the  several  taxes  included  in  the  list),  and  that  a 
copy  thereof  is  left  with  the  undersigned,  A.  B.,  at  his  office  (mill, 
dwelling-house,  or  as  the  case  may  be),  where  the  same  may  be  seen 
and  examined  by  any  person  interested,  during  twenty  days  from  the 
date  of  this  notice;  and  that  said  trustees  will  meet  at  the  house 
of  ,  in    said    district,    on    the  day   of  next, 

(specifying  a  day  subsequent  at  least  twenty-one  days,  to  the  posting) 
at  o'clock,  in  the  noon,  to  review  the  said  tax  list,  on  the 

application  of  any  person  conceiving  himself  aggrieved. 
Dated  this  day  of  ,185 

A.  B.,    \ 

CD.,     >  Trustees  of  District  No.      . 

E.  F.,     ) 

"  §  5.  If  the  assessors  shall  wilfully  neglect  to  hold  the  meeting 
specified  in  the  last  preceding  section,  each  assessor  so  neglecting  shall 


286  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

be  liable  to  a  penalty  of  twenty  dollars,  to  be  sued  for  and  recovered 
before  any  court  having  jurisdiction  thereof  by  the  supervisor  of  the 
town,  for  the  use  of  the  poor  of  the  same  town ;  and  in  case  of  such 
neglect  to  meet  for  review,  any  person  aggrieved  by  the  assessment  of 
the  assessors  may  appeal  to  the  board  of  supervisors  at  their  next 
annual  meeting,  who  shall  have  power  to  review  and  correct  such  assess- 
ment." (Session  Laws  q/'1851,j9.  333.) 

Quere,  whether  the  provision  for  an  appeal  to  the  board  of  super- 
visors is  applicable  to  a  school  district  tax.  Even  if  it  is,  there  is  no 
provision  for  suspending  the  proceedings  for  collection  upon  such  an 
appeal. 

The  trustee  with  whom  the  tax  list  is  left  is  required  by  law  to 
"  submit  the  same,  during  the  twenty  days  specified  in  such  notice,  to 
the  inspection  of  all  persons  who  shall  apply  for  that  purpose." 

The  provisions  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  in  regard  to  the  proceedings 
to  be  had  where  application  is  made  for  a  reduction  of  the  valuation, 
have  been  materially  varied  by  the  following  sections  of  chap.  176  of 
1851  : 

"  §  6.  Whenever  any  person,  on  his  own  behalf  or  on  behalf  of  those 
whom  he  may  represent,  shall  apply  to  the  assessors  of  any  town  or 
ward  to  reduce  the  value  of  his  real  and  personal  estate,  as  set  down 
in  their  assessment  roll,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  such  assessors  to 
examine  such  person  under  oath  touching  the  value  of  his  or  their  said 
real  or  personal  estate,  and  after  such  examination  they  shall  fix  the 
value  thereof  at  such  amount  as  they  may  deem  just ;  but  if  such  person 
shall  refuse  to  answer  any  question  to  the  value  of  his  real  or  personal 
estate,  or  the  amount  thereof,  the  said  assessors  shall  not  reduce  the 
value  of  such  real  or  personal  estate.  The  examination  so  taken  shall 
be  written,  and  shall  be  subscribed  by  the  person  examined,  and  shall 
be  filed  in  the  office  of  the  town  clerk  of  the  town  or  city  in  which  such 
assessment  shall  be  made ;  and  any  person  who  shall  wilfully  swear 
falsely,  on  such  examination  before  the  assessors,  shall  be  deemed  guilty 
of  wilful  and  corrupt  perjury. 

"  §  1.  The  assessors  of  the  several  towns  and  wards  of  this  state  shall 
have  power  to  administer  oaths  to  any  person  applying  to  them,  under 
the  provisions  of  the  sixth  section  of  this  act." 

Formerly,  upon  the  making  of  an  affidavit,  by  a  person  asking  a 
reduction,  that  the  value  of  his  personal  estate  did  not  exceed  a  given 
sum,  the  assessors  and  trustees  were  bound  to  reduce  his  assessment  to 
the  amount  fixed  by  him.  Under  the  preceding  sections  they  are 
required,  instead  of  taking  a  mere  affidavit,  to  examine  him  orally, 
under  oath  to  make  true  answers  to  such  questions  as  shall  be  put  to 
him  touching  the  value  of  his  real  and  personal  estate.  They  are  at 
liberty  to  put  any  question,  the  answer  to  which  may  assist  them  in 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  287 

arriving  at  a  correct  conclusion  on  the  subject,  and  are  not  at  liberty  to 
reduce  his  valuation,  if  he  refuses  to  answer.  An  affidavit  without  the 
examination,  or  without  the  examination  being  reduced  to  writing,  is  of 
no  avail  as  evidence  to  reduce  the  valuation.  (12  Hoio.  Prac.  R.,  237.) 
After  the  examination,  the  assessors  are  to  fix  the  valuation,  and  are 
not  limited  to  that  fixed  by  the  person  examined. 

The  provision  of  §  6,  chap.  176  of  1851,  above  cited,  relate  as  well 
to  those  persons  who  apply  for  a  reduction  of  assessments  against  them 
in  a  representative  character,  as  executors,  &c,  as  to  those  who  ask  it 
in  their  own  behalf.  They  are  entitled  to  a  deduction  for  debts  due 
from  them  in  their  representative  character,  and  are  to  be  examined  as  to 
the  valuation  of  the  property  under  their  control,  as  such  representatives 
in  the  same  manner  as  if  it  belonged  to  them  in  their  private  capacity. 

No.  132.  Every  taxable  inhabitant  of  a  district,  who 
shall  have  been  within  four  years  set  off  from  any  other 
district  without  his  consent,  and  shall  within  that  period 
have  actually  paid  in  such  other  district,  under  a  lawful 
assessment  therein,  a  district  tax  for  building  a  school-house, 
shall  be  exempted  by  the  trustees  of  the  district  where  he 
shall  reside  from  the  payment  of.  any  tax  for  building  a 
school-house  therein.  (Sec.  98,  chap.  480  ^1847. ) 

This  exemption  relates  only  to  a  tax  for  building  a  school-house,  and 
does  not  extend  to  one  for  repairs,  fuel  or  any  other  current  expense. 
A  voluntary  contribution  for  building  a  house  in  another  district  is  not 
ground  for  an  exemption,  nor  is  the  fact  that  a  person  has  been  taxed, 
if  he  has  not  actually  paid  the  tax  by  the  sale  of  his  property  or  other- 
wise ;  nor  is  he  exempt  if  he  has  been  set  off  upon  his  own  petition  or 
consent.  (Digest,  ante,  p.  40.) 

No.  133.  Every  district  tax  shall  be  assessed,  and  the  tax 
list  therefor  be  made  out  by  the  trustees,  and  a  proper  war- 
rant attached  thereto,  within  thirty  days  after  the  district 
meeting  in  which  the  tax  shall  have  been  voted.  (Sec.  99, 
chap.  480  o/1847,  as  amended  by  %  4,  chap.  382  of  1849.) 

The  supreme  court  said  of  this  section,  in  2  Denio,  161  :  "There  are 
no  negative  words  in  the  statute,  such  as  would  necessarily  make  u 
imperative ;  and  in  such  a  case,  for  the  benefit  of  the  public,  the  act 
may  be  done  after  the  time  has  elapsed ;  the  statute,  as  to  time,  being 
regarded   as  directory  only."     The   court  remark,  however :  "  Had  it 


2S8  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

appeared,  in  this  case,  that  there  was  such  a  change  in  the  taxahle 
persons  or  property  in  the  district,  between  the  expiration  of  the  month 
and  the  time  the  tax  list  was  made  out,  a  different  question  would  have 
been  presented.  But  it  does  not  appear  that  there  was  any  such  change, 
or  that  the  plaintiff  was  in  any  way  injured"  by  the  delay."  The  policy 
of  the  statute  is,  that  the  tax  shall  affect  only  the  persons  and  property 
subject  to  the  authority  of  the  meeting  which  imposes  it,  and  such 
persons  as  shall  voluntarily  expose  themselves  to  liability  while  the  tax 
list  is  being  made  out.  Land  purchased  after  a  tax  is  voted,  but  before 
the  tax  list  is  made  out,  must  be  assessed  to  the  purchaser,  if  he  has 
taken  possession ;  and  the  seller  may  be  taxed  for  the  purchase  money 
secured  by  mortgage,  as  personal  property,  although  he  has  reserved 
the  possession  to  a  tenant  until  a  period  which  will  not  arrive  until  after 
the  tax  list  is  made  out.  [Digest,  p  39.)  Persons  about  to  remove 
from  the  district  must  be  included  in  the  tax  list,  if  inhabitants  when 
it  is  completed ;  and.  as  against  them,  it  is  not  to  be  regarded  as  com- 
pleted until  the  expiration  of  thirty  days — if  it  can  be,  which  is  at  least 
doubtful  —  until  the  actual  delivery  thereof  to  the  collector  with  a 
warrant  attached. 

It  is  the  clear  duty  of  trustees  to  proceed  in  the  making  out  of  every 
tax  list  with  such  dispatch  that  it  may  be  completed  within  thirty  days, 
whenever  practicable.  [Digest,  p.  22.)  It  should  not  be  postponed 
because  circumstances  may  render  it  expedient  to  delay  the  collection. 

If  the  copy  of  an  appeal  be  served  before  the  trustees  have  completed 
their  assessment,  the  time  during  which  the  appeal  is  pending  is  to  be 
deducted  in  counting  the  thirty  days. 

In  regard  to  the  form  of  a  tax  list,  the  following  directions,  prescribed 
by  title  2,  chap.  13,  1st  part  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  for  the  government 
of  assessors,  are  appropriate,  and  it  would  conduce  to  accuracy  for 
trustees  to  conform  to  them,  whether  it  be  strictly  necessary  or  not : 

"  §  9.  They  shall  prepare  an  assessment  roll,  in  which  they  shall  set 
down  in  four  separate  columns,  and  according  to  the  best  information  in 
their  power : 

"  1.  In  the  first  column,  the  names  of  all  the  taxable  inhabitants  in 
the  town  or  ward,  as  the  case  may  be ; 

"  2.  In  the  second  column,  the  quantity  of  land  to  be  taxed  to  each 
person ; 

"  3.  In  the  third  column,  the  full  value  of  such  land,  according  to  the 
definition  of  the  term  land,  as  given  in  the  first  title  of  this  chapter; 

"  4.  In  the  fourth  column,  the  full  value  of  all  the  taxable  personal 
property  owned  by  such  person,  after  deducting  the  just  debts  owing 
by  him. 


DISTRICT  TAXES. 


"§  10.  Where  a  person  is  assessed  as  trustee,  guardian,  executor  or 
administrator,  he  shall  be  assessed  as  such,  with  the  addition  to  his 
name  of  his  representative  character,  and  such  assessment  shall  be  car- 
ried out  in  a  separate  line  from  his  individual  assessment ;  and  he  shall 
be  assessed  for  the  value  of  the  real  estate  held  by  him  in  such  repre- 
sentative character,  at  the  full  value  thereof,  and  for  the  personal 
property  held  by  him  in  such  representative  character,  deducting  from 
such  personal  property  the  just  debts  due  from  him  in  such  repre- 
sentative character." 

The  following  are  suitable  forms  of  tax  list  and  warrant : 


List  of  taxes  apportioned  "by  the  trustees  of  District  No.  ,  in  the 

town  of  Trenton,  county  of  Oneida,  on  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  said 
district,  and  corporations  holding  property  therein,  and  upon  real 
estate  lying  within  the  boundaries  of  such  district,  the  owners  of 
which  are  non-residents  thereof,  for  the  purpose  of  raising  the  sum 
of  $481.80,  laid  and  charged  on  the  said  district  according  to  law, 
viz :  $50  for  the  purchase  of  an  additional  site  and  $400  for  building 
thereon,  voted  by  district  meeting  on  the         day  of  ,  185  ,  $10 

for  repairs  of  the  school-house,  $8.20  for  fuel,  and  $13.60  for  amount 
of  exemptions  of  indigent  inhabitants  from  rate  bill,  for  term  ending 
the  day  of  ,  185  . 


NAMES    OP    TAXABLE    INHABI- 
TANTS AND  CORPORATIONS. 


James  Thomas, 

James  Thomas,    executor  of  estate  of 

John  Thomas,  deceased 

Clark  Cotton  Manufacturing  Company, . . 
John  Davison 


Quantity  of 
land  taxed. 


Value  of 
such  land. 


$400 


1,250 
625 


Value  of 
taxable  person- 
al property. 


$1,025 
25,000 


Total 

amount  of 

taxes. 


$6  81 

IT  45 

446  91 

10  64 


[CODE.] 


37 


290 


DISTRICT  TAXES. 


Statement  and  description  of  unoccupied  and  unimproved  lands  of 
non-residents  of  said  district  on  which  a  tax  has  been  imposed  as 
above  stated : 


NO.  AND  DESCRIPTION  OF  LOTS  AND 
PAKT3  OF  LOTS. 


Qualify  of  land 

therein  liable  to 

taxation. 


Valuation  of 
such  quantity. 


Amount  of 
tax. 


No.  17,  short  tract, 

That  part  of  the  southwest  quarter  of  lot  No.  23, 
short  tract,  which  lies  east  of  a  line  running 
north  43°  west  from  the  southeast  corner  of 
lot  No.  12,  in  the  same  tract,  being  the  dis- 
trict boundary  line, 


S25  00 


$0  75 


» 


To  the  collector  of  School  District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  Trenton,  in 

the  county  of  Oneida  : 

You  are  hereby  commanded  to  receive  from  each  of  the  taxable  inhabi- 
tants and  corporations  named  in  the  foregoing  list,  and  of  the  owners  of 
the  real  estate  described  therein,  the  several  sums  mentioned  in  the  last 
column  of  the  said  list,  opposite  to  the  persons  and  corporations  so 
named  and  to  the  several  tracts  of  land  so  described,  or  so  much 
thereof  as  may  be  voluntarily  paid  to  you  for  two  successive  weeks  after 
the  delivery  to  you  of  this  warrant,  together  with  one  cent  on  each 
dollar  thereof  for  your  fees ;  and  after  the  expiration  of  the  time  above 
mentioned  to  proceed  forthwith  to  collect  the  residue  of  the  sums  not  so 
paid  in  as  aforesaid,  with  five  cents  on  each  dollar  thereof  for  your  fees; 
and  in  case  any  person  upon  whom  such  tax  is  imposed,  shall  neglect 
or  refuse  to  pay  the  same,  you  are  to  levy  the  same  by  distress  and  sale 
of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  the  person  or  corporation  so  taxed,  in  the 
same  manner  as  on  warrants  issued  by  the  board  of  supervisors  to  the 
collectors  of  taxes  in  towns;  and  ycj  are  to  make  a  return  of  this  war- 
rant within  thirty  days  after  the  delivery  thereof  to  you ;  and  within 
that  time  to  pay  over  all  moneys  collected  by  virtue  hereof  to  the 
trustees  of  the  said  district,  or  some  one  of  them ;  and  if  any  tax  on  the 
real  estate  of  a  non-resident  mentioned  in  the  said  list  shall  be  unpaid 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  291 

at  the  time  when  you  are  required  to  return  this  warrant,  you  are  to 

deliver  to  the  trustees  of  the  said  district  an  account  thereof,  according 

to  law. 

Given    under   our   hands   this  day  of  ,  in  the  year  one 

thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty- 

A.  B,  j 

C.  D.,  >  Trustees. 

E.   F.,  ) 

When  the  tax  has  been  levied  and  assessed  by  all  the  trustees,  their 
judicial  duties  are  at  an  end,  and  it  is  unimportant  whether  all  are 
present  at  the  signing  of  the  warrant,  which  is  but  a  ministerial  act. 
(19  Barb.,  167.)  It  is  because  the  issuing  of  the  warrant  is  a  minis- 
terial act,  and  the  statute  prescribes  the  legal  effect  of  the  process,  that 
the  trustees  will  be  trespassers  if  they  adopt  a  form  which  departs  from 
it  and  directs  the  collector  to  act  otherwise  than  the  law  directs.  (16 
Wend.,  607.)  The  collector  acts  for  two  weeks  after  the  delivery  of 
the  warrant  as  mere  receiver  of  taxes ;  if  he  undertakes  to  levy  upon 
property,  within  that  time,  he  becomes  a  trespasser.  (17  Barb.,  147.) 

The  statute  no  longer  prescribes  thirty  days,  or  any  other  period 
within  which  the  warrant  shall  be  made  returnable  (18  Barb.,  331); 
but  the  trustees  must  prescribe  a  time  in  the  warrant,  and  should  not 
depart  from  the  former  usage,  except  for  strong  reasons. 

No.  134.  The  warrant  issued  and  annexed  to  any  tax  list 
or  rate  bill  shall  be  under  the  hands  of  the  trustees  of  the 
district,  or  a  majority  of  them ,  and  it  shall  not  be  net  essary 
for  the  said  trustees  to  affix  their  seals  to  any  such  warrant. 
{Sec.  110,  chap.  480  </ 1847.) 


COLLECTION  OF  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

No.  135.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  trustees,  after  the 
expiration  of  the  said  thirty  days,  to  deliver  the  said  tax  list 
and  warrant  to  the  collector  of  the  district,  and  such  collector 
is  hereby  authorized  and  directed,  upon  receiving  his  warrant, 
for  two  successive  weeks  to  receive  such  taxes  as  may  be 
voluntarily  paid  to  him  ;  and  in  case  the  whole  amount  shall 
not  be  so  paid  in,  the  collector  shall  proceed  forthwith  to  col- 
lect the  same.  He  shall  receive  for  his  services,  on  all  sums 
paid  in  as  aforesaid,  one  per  cent,  and  upon  all  sums  col- 


292  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

lected  by  him,  after  the  expiration  of  the  time  mentioned,  five 
per  cent ;  and  in  case  a  levy  and  sale  shall  be  necessarily 
made  by  such  collector,  he  shall  be  entitled  to  traveling  fees 
at  the  rate  of  six  cents  per  mile,  to  be  computed  from  the 
school-house  in  such  district.  ( Sec,  100,  chap.  480  of  1847,  as 
amended  by  §  5,  chap.  382  of  1849. ) 

The  warrant  should  not  be  delivered  to  the  collector  until  the  expi- 
ration of  thirty  days  after  the  tax  is  voted.  This  is  necessary,  in  order  to 
secure  to  the  inhabitants  the  opportunity  of  paying  their  taxes  with  but 
one  per  cent  addition,  for  collector's  fees,  during  two  weeks.  He  is  not 
bound  to  give  them  notice  that  it  is  in  his  hands,  and  they  are  entitled 
to  presume  that  it  is  not  until  thirty  days  have  expired  after  the  meeting 
at  which  the  tax  was  voted.  His  fees  are  not  to  be  included  in  the  tax 
(11  Wend.,  92),  and  he  is  entitled  to  retain  no  fees  upon  sums  which 
he  is  unable  to  collect. 

A  further  reason  for  not  issuing  the  warrant  till  the  expiration  of 
thirty  days  from  the  day  the  tax  was  voted,  is  because  that  time  is 
allowed  for  the  bringing  of  an  appeal,  which  operates  as  a  suspension 
of  the  proceedings,  under  the  vote  against  which  the  appeal  is  brought, 
from  the  time  a  copy  is  duly  served  and  the  original  forwarded  to  the 
Department  of  Public  Instruction,  until  a  decision  is  made. 

The  trustees  ought  to  take  a  written  receipt  from  the  collector,  for 
the  tax  list  and  warrants,  -specifying  the  return  day  and  the  amount  to 
be  collected,  that  they  may  be  prepared  with  the  proper  evidence,  in 
case  it  should  be  necessary  to  bring  an  action  against  him. 

The  representatives  of  a  deceased  person  are  not  entitled  to  any  delay 
in  the  payment  of  a  rate  bill  or  tax  list,  but  are  bound  to  pay  on 
demand  ;  and  on  refusal  or  neglect,  the  collector  may  proceed  to  sell 
any  property  found  on  the  premises.  By  §  27,  sub.  2,  2  R.  S.,  28, 
taxes  of  all  kinds  have  preference  to  any  other  demand.  (Per  Spencer, 
Supt.,  1840.) 

Where  trustees  receive  payments  on  tax  lists  or  rate  bills,  they  are 
regarded  as  receiving  the  same  as  the  agents  of  the  collector  ;  and  the 
latter  is  entitled  to  his  per  centage  on  the  amount  so  received,  and  may 
legally  collect  it  by  virtue  of  his  warrant.  The  collector  is  also  entitled 
to  his  per  centage  on  the  amount  paid  by  the  trustees,  notwithstanding 
no  actual  exchange  of  funds  is  made  between  the  latter  and  the  former 
(Per  Young,,  Supt^  1843.) 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  293 

No.  136.  If  by  the  neglect  of  any  collector  any  school 
moneys  shall  be  lost  to  any  school  district,  which  might  have 
been  collected  within  the  time  limited  in  the  wart  ant  deliv- 
ered to  him  for  their  collection,  he  shall  forfeit  to  such  district 
the  full  amount  of  the  moneys  thus  lost,  and  shall  account  for 
and  pay  over  the  same  to  the  trustees  of  such  district,  in  the 
same  manner  as  if  they  had  been  collected.  (Sec.  101,  chap. 
480  o/1847.) 

The  collector's  power  to  sell  property  ceases  with  the  expiration  of 
the  time  limited  in  the  warrant  for  its  return,  even  under  a  levy  made 
before  the  return  day ;  and  unless  the  warrant  is  renewed  hy  the  trus- 
tees, his  liability  for  not  collecting  becomes  fixed.  (18  Barb.,  330.)  It 
behoves  him,  therefore,  not  to  intermit  his  efforts  to  collect  a  tax  upon 
any  verbal  directions  of  the  trustees.  Having  commanded  him  by  a 
warrant,  he  is  bound  to  complete  its  execution,  unless  the  time  is 
extended  by  the  equally  solemn  act  of  renewal.  Nor  is  he  bound  to 
delay,  against  his  own  wishes,  because  the  trustees  desire  it.  They  may 
sometimes  desire  to  suspend  proceedings,  where  he  is  indifferent,  because 
a  warrant,  regular  on  its  face,  is  sufficient  for  his  protection,  while  they 
may  be  responsible  from  a  defect  of  authority  not  apparent  on  its  face. 
In  such  a  case,  he  should  require  a  formal  certificate  from  the  trustees, 
that  they  have  withdrawn  the  warrant,  and  discharged  him  from  the 
further  execution  thereof,  and  should  make  a  return  thereon  to  this 
effect : 

"  Under  the  within  warrant,  I  have  received  and  collected  of  the  fol- 
lowing persons  named  in  the  tax  list  thereto  attached  the  sum  of  money 
set  opposite  to  their  respective  names,  viz :  James  Thomas,  $6.81 ; 
James  Thomas,  executor  of  John  Thomas,  deceased,  $17.45,  &c,  &c, 
and  have  this  day  ceased  from  the  further  execution  thereof,  by  the 
written  direction  of  C.  D.  and  E.  F.,  a  majority  of  the  trustees. 
Dated  this         day  of  ,  185     . 

STEPHEN  GPJNNER, 

Collector." 

Transactions  of  this  nature  should  never  be  left  to  rest  upon  loose 
conversations,  nor  should  any  officer  of  a  district  permit  his  responsi- 
bility to  the  inhabitants  to  be  confounded  with  that  of  other  officers, 
who  may  have  distinct  accounts  to  render  for  their  conduct  in  the 
affair. 


294  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

Where  a  warrant  runs  out  in  the  collector's  hands,  he  is  answerable 
for  any  loss  arising  from  his  neglect,  notwithstanding  such  warrant  may 
have  been  afterwards  renewed  and  delivered  to  his  successor.  (  Com. 
School  Dec.,  308.) 

No.  137.  For  the  recovery  of  all  forfeitures,  and  of  balances 
in  the  hands  of  a  collector,  which  he  shall  have  neglected  to 
pay  over,  the  trustees  of  the  district  may  sue  in  their  name 
of  office,  and  shall  be  entitled  to  recover  the  same,  with 
interest  and  costs;  and  the  moneys  recovered  shall  be  applied 
by  them  in  the  same  manner  as  if  paid  without  suit.  (Sec. 
102,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

The  forfeiture  referred  to  in  this  section  is  the  amount  of  money 
which  a  collector  might  have  collected  by  the  exercise  of  proper  diligence. 
The  legal  presumption  is,  when  the  return  day  of  a  warrant  arrives, 
that  the  collector  has  all  the  money  in  his  hands.  It  is  sufficient  for 
the  trustees  to  prove  that  they  delivered  to  him  a  tax  list  and  warrant 
for  the  collection  of  a  certain  amount,  and  that  the  time  therein  speci- 
fied for  its  return  has  expired.  They  may  then  rest  their  case,  and  it 
lies  upon  the  collector  to  produce  in  his  defence  the  receipts  of  the 
trustees  for  such  moneys  as  he  may  have  paid,  his  account  of  non-resi- 
dent taxes,  with  his  affidavit  of  his  inability  after  diligent  efforts  to  col- 
lect the  same,  and  then  to  show  as  to  taxable  inhabitants  named  in  the 
tax  list,  that  they  had  no  personal  property  within  the  district  upon 
which  he  could  levy.  The  trustees  may  then  prove  in  reply  that  such 
taxable  inhabitants  had  personal  property,  outside  of  the  district  but 
within  the  county  (or,  if  the  district  includes  parts  of  more  than  one 
county,  in  either  county ),  and  they  ought  probably  to  show,  in  addition, 
that  the  collector  had  express  notice  of  the  fact,  or  that  he  knew  it,  or 
that  it  was  so  far  known  in  the  district  that  the  collector,  by  reasonable 
diligence  in  making  inquiries,  would  have  ascertained  such  facts  as  to 
make  it  his  duty  to  look  for  property  outside  of  the  district.  The  ques- 
tion is,  would  an  ordinary  man — not  a  particularly  keen  or  covetous 
man — armed  with  the  power  to  appropriate  any  chattels  of  his  debtor 
to  the  payment  of  a  debt  due  himself,  have  failed  to  discover  that  such 
property  was  within  his  reach? 

No.  138.  Any  collector,  to  whom  any  such  tax  list  and  war- 
rant may  be  delivered  for  collection,  may  execute  the  same 
in  any  other  district  or  town  in  the  same  county,  or  in  any  other 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  295 

county  where  the  district  is  a  joint  district,  and  composed  of 
territory  from  adjoining  counties,  in  the  same  manner  and  with 
the  like  authority  as  in  the  district  in  which  the  trustees  issuing 
the  said  warrant  may  reside,  and  for  the  benefit  of  which  said 
tax  is  intended  to  be  collected  ;  and  the  bail  or  sureties  of 
any  collector,  given  for  the  faithful  performance  of  his  official 
duties,  are  hereby  declared  and  made  liable  for  any  moneys 
received  or  collected  on  any  such  tax  list  and  warrant,  and 
may  be  prosecuted  for  the  recovery  thereof.  (  Sec.  103,  chap. 
480  o/lS47.) 

This  section  is  a  legislative  recognition  of  the  validity  of  a  bail  bond, 
executed  by  a  collector  and  his  sureties,  though  the  power  to  enforce 
the  execution  of  such  a  bond,  by  vacating  the  collector's  office  in  case 
of  his  refusal,  has  been  withdrawn. 

The  following  form  may  be  adopted  for  a  bond,  which  should  be 
obtained  whenever  practicable : 

Know  all  men  by  these  presents  that  we,  A.  B.,  C.  D.,  and  R.  S. 
(the  collector  and  his  sureties),  are  held  and  firmly  hound  to  E.  F., 
G.  II.,  <fec,  trustees  of  School  District  No.         ,  in  the  town  of  , 

(or  Joint   District   No.         ,  in    the    towns  of  and  , 

in  the  sum  of  (here  insert  a  sum  double  the  amount  to  be  collected), 
to  be  paid  to  the  said  E.  F.,  G.  II.,  <kc,  trustees  as  aforesaid,  or  to  the 
survivor  or  survivors  of  them,  or  their  successors ;  to  the  which  pay- 
ment, well  and  truly  to  be  made,  we  bind  ourselves,  our  heirs,  executors 
and  administrators,  firmly  by  these  presents.  Sealed  with  our  seals,  and 
dated  this         day  of  ,18         ,  &c. 

Whereas,  the  above  bounden  A.  B.  has  been  chosen  (or  appointed,  as 
the  case  may  be)  collector  of  the  above  mentioned  School  District 
No.         ,  in  the  town  of  ,  in  conformity  to  the  statutes  relating 

to  common  schools ;  now,  therefore,  the  condition  of  this  obligation  is 
such,  that  if  the  said  A.  B.  shall  well  and  truly  collect  and  pay  over  all 
moneys  received  by  him  as  such  collector,  and  shall  in  all  respects  duly 
and  faithfully  execute  ail  the  duties  of  his  office  as  collector  of  such  dis- 
trict, then  this  obligation  shall  be  void,  otherwise  to  be  in  full  force  and 
virtue. 

Signed,  sealed  and  delivered  in  the  presence  of 

A.  B.,  [l.  s.] 
C.  D.,  [l.  s.] 
R.  S.,  [l.  s.] 


296  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

Where  a  collector  levies  upon  property  out  of  his  district,  he  should 
put  up  notices  of  the  sale  of  such  property,  as  well  in  the  district  where 
the  sale  is  to  take  place  as  in  that  of  his  residence.  (Per  Young,  Supt., 
1842.) 

No.  139.  The  warrants  issued  by  the  trustees  of  school  dis- 
tricts, for  the  collection  of  any  district  tax  authorized  to  be 
levied,  raised  and  collected  by  this  title,  or  for  the  collection 
of  any  district  school  rate  bill,  shall  have  the  like  force  and 
effect  as  warrants  issued  by  boards  of  supervisors  of  counties 
to  collectors  of  taxes  in  towns ;  and  the  colle<  tor  to  whom 
any  such  warrant  may  be  delivered  for  collection  is  hereby 
authorized  and  required  to  collect,  from  every  person  in  such 
tax  list  or  rate  bill  named,  the  sum  therein  set  opposite  to  his 
name,  or  the  amount  due  from  any  person  or  persons  specified 
therein,  in  the  same  manner  that  collectors  are  authorized  to 
collect  town  and  county  charges.  (Sec.  Ill,  chap.  480  of 
1847.) 

It  has  been  before  stated  that  a  subsequent  statute  (§7,  chap.  151  of 
1851,  ante,  No.  113)  has  created  a  distinction  between  the  force  of  a 
warrant  under  a  rate  bill  and  that  under  a  tax,  in  this,  viz.,  that  all  pro- 
perty exempt  from  executions  in  civil  actions  is  exempt  from  levy  for  a 
rat'e  bill,  while  the  only  property  exempt  from  levy  for  a  tax  is  the  mili- 
tary equipment  specified  in  the  note  to  p.  211. 

The  collector  may  levy  upon  any  goods  and  chattels  lawfully  in  the 
possession  of  the  person  liable  to  pay  the  tax,  that  is  to  say,  the  person 
named  in  the  tax  list,  although  such  person  be  not  the  owner  of  such 
goods  and  chattels.  (13  Wend.,  629.)  The  individual  property  of  an 
executor,  administrator  or  trustee  may  be  taken  for  a  tax  imposed  on 
him  in  bis  representative  character,  when  no  property  of  the  testator, 
intestate  or  cestui  que  trust  can  be  found.  (4  Wend^  223.)  But  the 
warrant  does  not  protect  the  collector,  if  he  levies  upon  property  in  the 
possession  of  persons  not  named  in  the  roll,  or  whose  names,  it  is  appa- 
rent from  the  roll  itself,  the  assessors  ought  not  to  have  set  down,  for 
example,  persons  whose  lands  are  described  in  the  part  of  the  tax  list 
containing  the  list  of  lands  taxed  as  non-resident.  (16  Barb.,  651.) 

The  manner  in  which  town  collector*,  are  authorized  to  collect  town 
and  county  charges  is  pointed  out  by  the  following  sections  of  title  3, 
chap.  13,  part  1st  of  the  Revised  Statutes: 

"  §  1 .  Every  collector,  upon  receiving  the  tax  list  and  warrant,  shall 
proceed  to  collect  the  taxes  therein  mentioned,  and  for  that  purpose 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  297 

shall  call  at  least  once  on  the  person  taxed,  or  at  the  place  of  his  usual 
residence,  if  in  the  town  or  ward  for  which  such  collector  has  been 
chosen,  and  shall  demand  payment  of  the  taxes  charged  to  him  on  his 
property. 

"§  2.  In  case  any  person  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  pay  the  tax 
imposed  on  him,  the  collector  shall  levy  the  same  by  distress  and  sale 
of  the  goods  and  chattels  of  the  person  who  ought  to  pay  the  same,  or 
of  any  goods  and  chattels  in  his  possession,  wheresoever  the  same  may 
be  found  within  the  district  of  the  collector ;  and  no  claim  of  property 
to  be  made  thereto  by  any  other  person  shall  be  available  to  prevent  a 
sale. 

"  §  3.  The  collector  shall  give  public  notice  of  the  time  and  place  of 
sale,  and  of  the  property  to  be  sold,  at  least  six  days  previous  to  the 
sale,  by  advertisements  to  be  posted  up  in  at  least  three  public  places  in 
the  town  where  such  sale  shall  be  made.  The  sale  shall  be  by  public 
auction. 

"  §  4.  If  the  property  distrained  shall  be  sold  for  more  than  the 
amount  of  the  tax,  the  surplus  shall  be  returned  to  the  person  in  whose 
possession  such  property  was  when  the  distress  was  made,  if  no  claim 
be  made  to  such  surplus  by  any  other  person.  If  any  other  person 
shall  claim  such  surplus,  on  the  ground  that  the  property  sold  belonged 
to  him,  and  such  claim  be  admitted  by  the  person  for  whose  tax  the 
same  was  distrained,  the  surplus  shall  be  paid  to  such  owner ;  but  if 
such  claim  be  contested  by  the  person  for  whose  tax  the  property  was 
distrained,  the  surplus  moneys  shall  be  paid  over  by  the  collector  to  the 
supervisor  of  the  town,  who  shall  retain  the  same  until  the  rights  of  the 
parties  shall  be  determined  by  clue  course  of  law." 

It  is  provided  by  the  Revised  Statutes  (vol.  2,  1st  ed.,  p.  522)  that 
"  No  replevin  shall  lie  for  any  property,  taken  by  virtue  of  any  warrant 
for  the  collection  of  any  tax,  assessment  or  fine,  in  pursuance  of  any 
statute  of  this  state." 

A  collector,  like  other  ministerial  officers  bound  to  execute  process,  is 
protected,  if  the  process  is  regular  on  its  face,  and  comes  from  a  court 
or  body  having  jurisdiction  of  the  subject  matter,  if  nothing  appears  in 
such  process  to  apprise  him  that  there  was  a  defect  of  jurisdiction  as 
to  the  particular  person  or  property  to  be  affected  by  such  process. 
The  warrant  and  tax  list  constitute  a  process  in  the  nature  of  an  execu- 
tion, and  must  be  construed  together  (3  Seld.,  517),  so  that  if  a  defect 
of  jurisdiction  appear  on  either,  the  collector  is  not  protected.  But  he 
is  not  bound  to  inquire  whether  the  trustees  have  not  erred  in  the 
exercise  of  their  jurisdiction.  Thus  he  was  held  to  be  protected,  in 
7  Wend.,  91,  where  the  trustees  had  taken  the  valuations  from  the 
assessment  roll,  which  was  incomplete  and  subsequently  varied,  though 
the  trustees  were  held  liable  as  trespassers.  But  the  collector  was  held 
liable,  in  16  Wend.,  607,  where  the  warrant  was  irregular  on  its  face, 

rCoDE.l  38 


298  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

in  commanding  him  to  proceed,  "  as  on  execution  issued  by  justices  of 
the  peace,"  and  in  18  Barb.,  327,  where  it  commanded  him  to  collect 
five  per  cent  on  all  sums  mentioned  in  the  tax  list,  without  excepting 
those  which  should  be  voluntarily  paid  him  in  two  weeks. 

The  rule  for  the  protection  of  ministerial  officers  acting  under  process, 
regular  and  legal  on  its  face,  is  held  to  prevail,  even  though  he  has 
knoioledge  of  facts  rendering  it  void  for  want  of  jurisdiction.  (5  Hill, 
440.)  "  He  must  be  governed,  and  is  protected,"  say  the  court  "  by  the 
process,  and  cannot  be  affected  by  anything  which  he  has  heard  or 
learned  out  of  it." 

No.  140.  If  the  sum  or  sums  of  money,  payable  by  any 
person  named  in  such  tax  list  or  rate  bill,  shall  not  be  paid 
by  him  or  collected  by  such  warrant  within  the  time  therein 
limited,  it  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  the  trustees  to  renew 
such  warrant  in  respect  to  such  delinquent  person  ;  or  in  case 
such  person  shall  not  reside  within  their  district  at  the  time 
of  making  out  a  tax  list  or  rate  bill,  or  shall  not  reside  therein 
at  the  expiration  of  such  warrant,  and  no  goods  or  chattels 
can  be  found  therein  wheron  to  levy  the  same,  the  trustees 
may  sue  for  and  recover  the  same  in  their  name  of  office. 
(Sec.  112,  chap.  480  o/1847.) 

Chief  Justice  Nelson,  delivering  the  opinion  of  the  supreme  court,  in 
24  Wend.,  269,  where  a  warrant  had  been  made  out  but  not  delivered 
to  the  collector,  and  the  return  day  having  passed,  while  it  remained  in 
the  hands  of  the  trustees,  it  was  renewed  and  then  delivered  to  the  col- 
lector, says  :  "  The  renewal  is  in  fact  but  a  reissuing  of  the  process,  and  I 
can  perceive  no  reason  against  regarding  it  as  an  original  issuing.  Nor 
can  the  difference  be  material  whether  it  lies  in  the  hands  of  the  trus- 
tees for  a  time  and  is  then  revived  by  a  renewal,  or  in  the  hands  of  the 
collector  unexecuted,  which  confessedly  would  justify  it."  In  3  Hill, 
495,  where  the  objection  was  that  the  original  warrant  was  not  under 
seal  (which,  as  the  law  then  stood,  rendered  it  void),  but  the  renewal 
was  signed  by  the  trustees  with  their  seals  affixed,  the  court  say :  "  The 
renewal  of  the  warrant  made  it  new  process  for  all  the  purposes  of  col- 
lecting the  taxes  then  unpaid;  it  is  the  same  thing,  substantially,  as 
though  the  original  warrant  had  been  recited  in  the  renewal ;  and  thus 
we  have  a  warrant  under  the  hands  and  seals  of  the  trustees."  In  4 
Barb.,  444,  it  was  held  that  the  issuing  of  a  new  warrant  was  a  good 
execution  of  the  power  to  renew.     In  1*7  Barb.,  145,  that  a  warrant  not 


DISTRICT  TAXES.  299 

issued  until  after  its  renewal,  becomes,  by  delivery  to  tbe  collector  with 
a  renewal  endorsed,  valid  and  effectual  process,  as  of  that  date  ;  au'd  that 
the  rights  of  tax  payers  and  duties  of  the  collector  are  the  same  as  they 
would  have  been  had  the  warrant  been  made  out  and  dated  as  an 
original  process  on  the  day  of  its  delivery  to  the  collector.  In  20  Barb., 
165,  where  three  trustees  signed  the  original  warrant,  but  one  of  them 
refused  to  sign  the  renewal ;  that  the  latter  was  not  liable  for  any  act 
done  under  the  renewal  and  after  the  original  return  day. 

The  renewal  is  to  be  under  the  hands  of  the  trustees,  or  a  majority 
of  them,  who  are  in  office  at  the  time  of  such  renewal.  For  the  purpose 
of  preserving  an  authentic  history  of  the  process,  it  is  better  to  append 
a  renewal  to  the  original  warrant  than  to  issue  a  new  one,  except  in 
cases  where  the  original  may  be  discovered  to  have  been  defective  in  its 
form.  It  ought  to  specify  the  duration  of  the  time  for  which  it  is 
renewed,  and  to  be  endorsed  upon  or  written  under  the  original  warrant, 
in  substantially  the  following  form  : 

We  hereby  renew  the  within  (or  above  written)  warrant  in  respect 
to  delinquents  for  the  period  of  thirty   days.     Dated  this  day 

of  ,  185  . 

A.  B.,  )  Trustees  of  District 
C.  D.,  >  Aro.  ,    in    the 

E.    F.,  )  town  of 

A  second  or  subsequent  renewal  requires  the  consent  of  the  super- 
visor, under  the  next  section.  In  that  case,  the  words  "  With  the 
approbation  of  the  supervisor  of  the  town   of  (in  which  the 

schoobhouse  is  located,"  if  the  district  be  a  joint  one),  should  precede 
the  above  form. 

Where  a  warrant  is  renewed  by  the  trustees,  the  collector  in  office  at 
the  time  of  such  renewal  must  execute  it. 

It  being  a  palpable  absurdity  to  talk  of  those  as  delinquents  who  have 
never  been  called  upon  to  pay,  this  language  of  the  statute  is  an  admo- 
nition to  the  trustees  not  to  suffer  a  warrant  to  run  out  in  their  hands 
without  issuing  it. 

The  latter  clause  of  the  above  section,  giving  the  trustees  the  right  to 
sue  persons  named  in  a  tax  list  or  rate  bill,  is  confined  to  such  as  did 
not  reside  within  the  district  at  the  time  of  making  out  the  list  or  bill, 
or  who  shall  have  ceased  to  reside  therein  at  the  expiration  of  the  war- 
rant. It  cannot  be  regarded  as  having  expired  until  a  renewal  may  have 
run  out ;  and  in  respect  to  both  classes  of  persons,  the  inability  to  find 


300  DISTRICT  TAXES. 

goods  and  chattels  whereon  to  levy  the  tax  or  rate  bill  should  be  proved 
by  the  sworn  return  of  the  collector  before  a  suit  is  brought.  Such 
persons  named  in  a  rate  bill  must  have  been  inhabitants  of  the  district 
at  the  time  they  sent  their  children  to  school,  which  they  may  have 
been  without  being  residents  in  the  legal  sense ;  in  a  tax  list,  they  may 
have  been  taxable  inhabitants,  under  some  of  the  definitions  of  those 
words  contained  in  the  statutes  regarding  taxation,  without  ever  having 
been  residents  or  having  in  fact  set  foot  in  the  district  at  all. 

No.  141.  Whenever  the  trustees  of  any  school  district  shall 
discover  any  error  in  a  tax  list  or  rate  bill  made  out  by  them, 
they  may,  with  the  approbation  and  consent  of  the  State 
Superintendent,  after  refunding  any  amount  that  may  have 
been  improperly  collected  on  such  tax  list  or  rate  bill,  if  the 
same  shall  be  required,  amend  and  correct  such  tax  list  or 
rate  bill,  in  conformity  to  law ;  and  whenever  more  than  one 
renewal  of  a  warrant  for  the  collection  of  any  tax  list  or  rate 
bill  may  become  necessary  in  any  district,  the  trustees  may 
make  such  further  renewal,  with  the  written  approbation  of 
the  [supervisor]  of  the  town  in  which  the  school-house  of  said 
district  shall  be  located,  to  be  endorsed  upon  such  warrant. 
(Sec.  113,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  56.] 

The  application  to  the  State  Superintendent,  for  his  consent  to  correct 
an  error,  should  be  under  the  hands  of  a  majority  of  the  trustees,  and 
should  state  specifically  wherein  the  error  is  supposed  to  consist,  and 
in  what  manner  they  propose  to  amend  and  correct  the  tax  list  or  rate 
bill.  It  will  ordinarily  be  the  better  mode  to  revoke  the  imperfect  tax 
list  or  rate  bill  and  to  make  out  a  new  one,  stating  in  the  heading 
thereof  that  it  is  "  Amended  and  corrected  with  the  approbation  and 
consent  of  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  by  his  order 
bearing  date  the  day  of  ,185  ."     The  order  should,  of 

course,  be  carefully  filed  as  evidence  of  the  authority  to  collect  under  it. 

The  approval  of  the  supervisor  may  be  given  by  his  endorsing  on  the 
warrant,  under  the  form  given  in  the  preceding  section,  the  words 
"  Approved  this         day  of  ,  185  .     H.  T.,  Supervisor  of  ." 

If  there  be  more  than  one  school-house  in  the  district,  and  they  be 
located  in  different  towns,  the  approval  should,  as  a  matter  of  prudence, 
be  signed  by  the  supervisors  of  all  such  towns.  It  is  a  matter  of  discre- 
tion with  the  supervisor,  in  the  first  instance,  to  grant  or  withhold  his 
approbation.  If  he  improperly  refuses  it,  the  remedy  is  by  appeal 
upon  regular  notice  to  him. 


DUTY  AND  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES.  301 

DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

No.  142.  If  the  moneys  apportioned  to  a  district  by  the 
town  [supervisor]  shall  not  have  been  paid,  it  shall  be  the 
duty  of  the  trustees  thereof  to  bring  a  suit  for  the  recovery 
of  the  same,  with  interest,  against  the  town  [supervisor]  in 
whose  hands  the  same  shall  be,  or  to  pursue  such  other 
remedy  for  the  recovery  thereof  as  is  or  shall  be  given  by 
law.  (Sec.  114,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to 
No.  50.) 

The  above  section  was  taken  substantially  from  the  Revised  Statutes. 
When  originally  enacted,  all  the  money  apportioned  to  a  district  was 
to  be  paid  to  the  trustees.  The  mode  of  payment  now,  so  far  as  it  relates 
to  the  money  apportioned  for  teachers'  wages,  is  confined  to  paying  to 
teachers  the  amount  of  orders  drawn  in  their  favor  by  the  trustees. 
This  section  would  seem  to  authorize  the  trustees  to  bring  an  action 
against  the  supervisor,  who,  having  money  in  his  hands  applicable  to 
the  payment  of  an  order,  has  refused  to  accept  and  pay  it.  Inasmuch 
as  the  drawing  of  a  valid  order  is  an  assignment  to  the  teacher  of  so 
much  of  the  fund  in  the  hands  of  the  supervisor  which  the  law  renders 
it  his  duty  to  transfer,  the  money  may  be  regarded  as  held,  after  the 
drawing  the  order,  for  the  use  of  the  teacher,  so  as  to  enable  him  also 
to  maintain  an  action.  There  is  nothing  to  regret  in  the  supervisor's 
being  exposed,  under  such  circumstances,  to  two  suits  for  the  same 
money.  His  remedy  is  to  pay  the  teacher,  with  interest,  and  then  he 
may  discharge  himself  of  the  action  of  the  trustees  by  the  payment  of 
their  costs. 

OF  THE  ANNUAL  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES. 

No.  143.  The  trustees  of  each  school  district  shall,  between 
the  first  and  fifteenth  days  of  January,  in  every  year,  make 
and  transmit  a  report,  in  writing,  to  the  [school  commissioner, 
to  be  deposited  with  the  town  clerk  of  the  town  in  which 
each  district  is  situated],  dated  on  the  first  day  of  January, 
in  the  year  in  which  it  shall  be  transmitted.  ( Sec.  115,  chap. 
480  of  184:7,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  67,  ante.) 

The  annual  report  of  the  trustees  is  to  be  addressed  to  the  school 
commissioner  having  jurisdiction  of  the  town  in  which  the  school-house 


302  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES. 

of  the  district  is  located,  and  the  trustees  must  deposit  it  before  the 
fifteenth  day  of  January  in  the  clerk's  office  of  that  town.  In  the  case 
of  a  joint  district,  haying  two  or  more  school-houses  situated  in  different 
towns  in  the  same  county,  the  original  site  should  control,  if  preserved ; 
otherwise,  that  of  the  oldest  or  principal  school-house.  If  the  district 
embraces  parts  of  two  or  more  counties,  as  many  reports  will  be  neces- 
sary ;  one  of  which  must  be  deposited  with  the  town  clerk  of  each  town. 
It  is  of  the  highest  importance  to  the  district  that  the  annual  report 
should  be  promptly  completed  and  deposited  with  the  proper  town  clerk. 
If  the  report  exhibits  any  failure  to  comply  with  the  requirements  of 
law,  it  is  all  the  more  important  to  have  it  promptly  in  the  hands  of  the 
commissioner,  as  no  relief  can  be  obtained  by  the  trustees  until  they 
shall  have  shown  that  it  has  been  sent  by  them  to  the  town  clerk.  A 
single  trustee  should  make  the  report,  if  his  colleagues  neglect  or  refuse 
to  complete  it,  or  to  sign  that  made  by  him  ;  and  in  such  case  he  should, 
in  the  report  itself,  state  the  reason  why  it  bears  a  single  signature.  So, 
in  respect  to  each  item  of  information,  he  should  give  the  facts  so  far  as 
his  own  knowledge  extends;  explaining  at  the  conclusion  that  the 
report  is  imperfect  by  reason  of  the  other  trustees  neglecting  to  supply 
him  with  the  necessary  statistics.  The  trustee  who  makes  this  report 
will  thereby  exempt  himself  from  the  penalty  of  ten  dollars,  and  the 
further  forfeiture  to  which  his  colleagues  are  subject,  under  a  subsequent 
section,  for  wilfully  neglecting  to  make  it. 

No.  144.  Every  such  report,  signed  and  certified  by  a 
majority  of  the  trustees  making  it,  shall  be  delivered  to  the 
[town  clerk  of  the  town  in  which  the  school-house  of  each 
district  is  situated,  from  whom  the  said  commissioners  shall 
obtain  the  same],  and  shall  specify: 

1.  The  whole  time  any  school  has  been  kept  in  their  district 
during  the  year  ending  on  the  day  previous  to  the  date  of 
such  report,  and  distinguishing  what  portion  of  the  time  such 
school  has  been  kept  by  qualified  teachers ; 

2.  The  amount  of  moneys  received  from  the  town  superin- 
tendent [and  supervisor]  during  such  year,  and  the  manner 
in  which  such  moneys  have  been  expended ; 

3.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  the  district  during 
such  year ; 

4.  The  number  of  children,  residing  in  the  district  on  the 
last  day  of  December  previous  to  the  making  of  such  report, 
between  the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one,  and  the  names  of 
the  parents  or  other  persons  with  whom  such  children  shall 


REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES.  303 

respectively  reside,  and  the  number  of  children  residing  with 
each ; 

5.  The  amount  of  money  paid  for  teachers'  wages,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  public  money  paid  therefor,  the  amount  of  taxes 
levied  in  said  district  for  purchasing  school-house  sites,  for 
building,  hiring,  purchasing,  repairing  and  insuring  school- 
houses,  for  fuel,  for  supplying  deficiencies  in  rate  bills,  for 
district  libraries,  or  for  any  other  purpose  allowed  by  law, 
and  such  other  information  in  relation  to  the  schools  and  the 
districts  as  the  superintendent  of  common  schools  may  from 
time  to  time  require.  (Sec.  116,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in 
conformity  to  %  8,  chap.  382  of  1849,  §§  1~  an&  13,  chap.  151 
of  1851,  and  Nos.  12  arid  67,  ante.) 

•  Blank  forms  for  the  reports  of  trustees  are  annually  prepared  at  the 
Department  of  Public  Instruction,  with  printed  instructions  in  regard 
to  the  mode  of  filling  them  up,  and  will  be  transmitted  through  the 
school  commissioners  to  the  town  clerks,  for  the  use  of  the  districts. 
They  will,  from  time  to  time,  require  other  information  than  that  par- 
ticularly specified  in  the  above  section,  as  may  be  necessary  to  enable 
the  superintendent  to  lay  before  the  legislature  a  report  of  the  actual 
work  accomplished  in  educating  the  children  of  the  state,  and  in  diffus- 
ing the  means  of  progressive  education  among  the  adults  by  the  district 
libraries.  The  remarks  here  to  be  made  relate  only  to  those  permanent 
items  of  statistics  required  by  the  statute  itself. 

1.  In  order  to  give  effect  to  the  provisions  of  JVos.  30  and  31,  ante, 
it  will  be  necessary  that  minute  accuracy  be  required  in  stating  the 
whole  time  any  school  —  that  is,  any  public  district  school  under  the 
charge  of  the  trustees  —  has  been  kept  in  the  district  during  the  year 
beginning  on  the  first  day  of  January  and  ending  with  the  thirty-first 
day  of  December  preceding  the  report.  The  proper  mode  of  stating  the 
facts,  so  as  to  preclude  any  error,  would  be  for  the  trustees  to  specify 
the  names  of  the  teachers,  and  the  period  of  actual  instruction  by  each, 
giving  the  number  of  weeks  and  days,  and  date  of  the  beginning  and 
ending  of  the  period  of  actual  instruction  by  each,  and  stating,  in 
respect  to  each,  whether  he  or  she  was  qualified,  and  if  (which  ought 
never  to  be  the  case)  the  teacher's  certificate  bears  date  subsequent  to 
the  commencement  of  his  term  of  instruction,  giving  the  date  of  such 
certificate.     The  manner  may  be  best  illustrated  by  a  specimen  form  : 


304  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES. 

"To  the   school   commissioner  for  the  first   assembly  district  of  the 

county  of  Oneida. 

The  undersigned  trustees  of  School  District  No.  ,  the  school- 
house  of  which  is  situated  in  the  town  of  ,  in  the  county  of 
Oneid'i,  certify  and  report  that  during  the  year  ending  on  the  31st  day 
of  December,  1857,  school  has  been  kept  in  their  district,  and  the 
periods  of  instruction  have  been  as  follows,  viz :  by  James  Mead,  a 
qualified  teacher,  between  the  2d  day  of  January,  1857,  and  the  10th 
day  of  March,  1857,  nine  weeks  and  three  days;  by  Ellen  Craft,  a 
qualified  teacher,  during  the  same  time,  nine  weeks  and  three  days,  and 
by  her  between  the  10th  day  of  March  and  the  1st  day  of  May,  seven 
weeks ;  by  Peter  Slow,  a  teacher  who  taught  three  weeks  while  unquali- 
fied, but  was  qualified  on  the  1st  day  of  April,  1857,  four  weeks,  while 
qualified,  his  period  of  actual  instruction  beginning  on  the  10th  day  of 
March  and  ending  on  the  1st  day  of  May,  1857  ;  by  Ellen  Craft,  a 
qualified  teacher,  between  the  15th  day  of  May,  1857,  and  the  22d 
Sept.,  1857,  eighteen  weeks  and  four  days;  and  by  Mary  Green,  a 
qualified  teacher,  at  the  same  time,  between  the  15th  day  of  May,  1857, 
and  the  22d  Sept.,  1857,  eighteen  weeks  and  four  days,  making  in  the 
aggregate  a  period  of  actual  instruction,  by  two  qualified  teachers  at 
the  same  time,  of  thirty-two  weeks,  or  seven  months  and  two  weeks, 
and  by  one  unqualified  teacher,  in  addition,  for  three  weeks." 

A  statement  of  the  facts,  as  they  actually  occurred,  it  is  always  easy 
to  make,  and  this  alone  will  give  the  commissioner  the  proper  materials 
to  determine  whether  the  district  is  entitled  to  one  or  two  district 
quotas. 

2.  The  amount  of  moneys  received  from  the  town  superintendent 
[and  supervisor]  during  such  year,  and  the  manner  in  which  such 
moneys  have  been  expended. 

The  amount  of  money  received  by  the  district  includes  as  well  that 
paid  for  its  use  to  teachers  upon  the  orders  of  trustees,  as  that  received 
directly  by  the  trustees,  for  library  purposes,  from  the  apportionment  of 
state  moneys,  and  the  income  of  school  lots,  fines  under  the  act  to  sup- 
press gambling  [chap.  504  of  1851),  or  the  revenue  of  local  funds 
which  may  come  through  the  hands  of  the  supervisor.  The  amount  to 
be  stated  must  include  all  moneys  received  by  any  of  the  trustees 
during  the  year,  whether  they  be  in  office  at  the  time  of  making  the 
report  or  not.  In  stating  the  manner  in  which  they  have  been 
expended,   the   amount   applied  upon  the  order  of  the  trustees  to  the 


REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES.  305 

compensation  of  teachers  duly  licensed  must  be  specified,  the  amount 
applied  to  the  purchase  of  books  for  the  library,  the  amount  applied 
to  the  purchase  of  maps,  globes,  black-boards  and  school  apparatus,  speci- 
fying particularly  the  articles  purchased,  and  the  dates  of  the  resolution 
of  the  district  meeting,  and  of  the  permission  of  the  State  Superintendent 
under  the  authority  of  which  the  expenditure  was  made.  If  any 
moneys  remain  unexpended,  the  amount,  and  the  reason  why  it  has  not 
been  expended,  should  be  stated  ;  as,  for  example,  that  it  is  in  the  hands 
of  a  trustee  who  is  a  defaulter,  naming  him. 

It  will  be  necessary  to  discriminate  between  the  moneys  received 
from  the  apportionment  made  by  the  State  Superintendent  and  the  school 
commissioners.  Upon  this  point,  instructions  will  be  found  upon  the 
printed  blanks,  and  the  form  of  the  report  itself  transmitted  to  the  town 
clerks. 

3.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  the  district  during  such  year. 
Under  this  head,  the  whole  number  of  children  who  have  received 

instruction  in  the  district  school  since  the  first  day  of  January  preceding 
is  to  be  stated,  without  regard  to  the  fact  whether  their  attendance  has 
been  long  or  short,  or  whether  they  or  their  parents  were  residents  or 
non-residents.  The  fact  must  be  ascertained  from  an  examination  of 
the  sworn  list  of  attendants  at  school, kept  by  the  teachers. 

4.  The  number  of  children  residing  in  the  district  on  the  last  day  of 
December  previous  to  the  making  of  such  report,  over  the  age  of  four 
years  and  under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  and  the  names  of  the  parents 
or  other  persons  with  whom  such  children  shall  respectively  reside,  and 
the  number  of  children  residing  with  each. 

In  order  to  carry  into  effect  the  provisions  of  No.  12,  ante,  the  trus- 
tees should  specify  how  many  of  the  children  enumerated  by  them  are 
Indians,  and  should  separate  them  in  their  list  of  parents  and  guardians 
from  other  children.  The  public  money  to  which  they  are  ratably 
entitled  is  to  be  devoted  exclusively  to  their  education.  There  may  be 
districts  containing  but  few  Indian  children,  and  these  may  resort  to 
the  district  school  for  instruction,  instead  of  attending  a  separate  Indian 
school.  In  such  cases,  the  money  apportioned  on  their  account  may, 
under  a  special  order  by  the  State  Superintendent,  to  be  obtained  upon 
a  verified  representation  of  all  the  facts  in  the  case,  be  allotted  to  the 
district  in  which  they  reside  or  attend  school ;  but  the  fund  is  to  be  kept 
separate,  and  the  district  has  no  right  to  it  except  that  which  may  be 
derived  under  such  an  order. 

[Code.]  39 


306  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES. 

Comment  in  regard  to  the  character  of  the  residence  of  children, 
their  parents,  guardians  or  employers,  in  order  to  entitle  the  trustees  to 
include  them  in  the  enumeration,  will  be  found  under  No.  146,  j>ost. 

5.  The  amount  of  money  paid  for  teachers'  wages,  in  addition  to  the 
public  money  paid  therefor,  the  amount  of  taxes  levied  in  said  district 
for  purchasing  school-house  sites,  for  building,  hiring,  purchasing  and 
insuring  school-houses,  for  fuel,  for  supplying  deficiencies  in  rate  bills, 
for  district  libraries,  or  for  any  other  purpose  allowed  by  law,  and 
such  other  information  in  relation  to  the  schools  and  the  districts  as  the 
superintendent  of  common  schools  may  from  time  to  time  require :  The 
total  amount  of  money  paid  for  teachers'  wages,  in  addition  to  that 
derived  from  the  apportionment  of  the  state  funds,  is  to  be  given  in  full, 
without  regard  to  the  source  whence  received,  rate  bills,  local  funds, 
tuition  bills  of  non-residents,  fines  or  donations. 

The  above  provision  recognizes  the  right  to  levy  a  tax  for  insuring 
school-houses,  though  it  is  not  mentioned  in  the  enumeration  of  the 
powers  of  district  meetings  in  No.  95,  ante,  except  as  it  may  be  deemed 
to  be  included  in  that  of  voting  a  tax  "  to  keep  in  repair"  the  school- 
house  and  its  appendages. 

In  stating  the  amount  of  the  tax  levied  during  the  year  for  the  various 
purposes  mentioned,  those  only  should  be  included  for  the  collection  of 
which  a  warrant  has  actually  been  delivered  to  the  collector  between 
January  1st  and  December  31st.  Unless  this  rule  is  carefully  observed, 
the  same  tax  may  be  reported  in  two  successive  years ;  the  one  in  which 
it  was  voted  and  the  warrant  issued,  and  the  other  in  which  it  was 
actually  collected  and  paid  to  the  trustees. 

No.  145.  It  shall  not  be  lawful  for  the  trustees  of  any 
school  district  to  include  in  their  annual  returns  the  names  of 
any  children  who  are  supported  at  a  county  poor-house  or 
orphan  asylum.  (Sec.  117,  chap.  480  o/'1847.) 

This  provision  was  intended  to  be  a  reenactment  of  §  6,  chap.  277 
of  1831,  by  which  the  duty  of  educating  pauper  children  was  imposed 
upon  the  towns  and  counties  responsible  for  their  support.  The  word 
not  was  omitted,  by  mistake,  in  the  printed  volume  of  Laws  of  1847. 
Upon  examination,  it  is  found  in  the  manuscript  volume  of  original 
laws,  in  the  office  of  the  secretary  of  state.  By  chap.  261  of  1850  it 
was  enacted  : 

"  §  1.  The  schools  of  the  several  incorporated  orphan  asylum  societies 
within  this  state,  other  than  those  in  the  city  of  New-York,  shall  paiti- 


REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES.  307 

cipatc  in  the  distribution  of  the  school  moneys,  in  the  same  manner  and 
to  the  same  extent,  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  children  educated 
therein,  as  the  common  schools  in  their  respective  cities  or  districts. 

"§  2.  The  schools  of  said  societies  shall  be  subject  to  the  rules  and 
regulations  of  the  common  schools  in  such  cities  or  districts,  but  shall 
remain  under  the  immediate  management  and  direction  of  the  said 
societies,  as  heretofore." 

It  is  obvious  that  it  is  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  the  act  of 
1850  to  consider  so  much  of  No.  145  as  prohibited  the  enumeration  of 
children  in  an  incorporated  orphan  asylum  within  the  district  as  any 
longer  remaining  in  force.  Deprived  of  their  natural  guardians,  they 
are  to  be  deemed  the  wards  of  the  societies  which  furnish  them  an 
asylum,  and  as  having  their  residence  in  it. 

In  regard  to  children  in  poor-houses,  it  will  be  seen  from  the  general 
principles  stated  in  the  comment  on  No.  91,  ante,  that  they  do  not 
acquire  a  residence  in  the  district  where  the  poor-house  is  situated  by 
reason  of  their  being  within  its  walls.  Nor  ought  they  to  be  enumerated 
in  the  district  from  which  they  removed  to  the  poor-house,  for  reasons 
stated  in  the  comment  to  the  next  section. 

Aro.  146.  The  annual  reports  of  trustees  of  school  districts, 
of  children  residing  in  their  district,  shall  include  all  over  four 
and  under  twenty-one  years  of  age  who  shall,  at  the  date  of 
such  report,  actually  be  in  the  district,  composing  a  part  of 
the  family  of  their  parents  or  guardians  or  employers  if  such 
parents,  guardians  or  employers  reside  at  the  time  in  such 
district,  although  such  residence  be  temporary ;  but  such  report 
shall  not  include  children  belonging  to  the  family  of  any 
person  who  shall  be  an  inhabitant  of  any  other  district  in  this 
state  in  which  such  children  may  by  law  be  included  in  the 
reports  of  its  trustees.  (Sec.  118,  chap.  480  o/*1847.) 

It  was  the  object  of  this  section  to  relax  the  strictness  of  the  rule 
which,  as  might  be  inferred  from  the  terms  of»the  4th  clause  of  No.  144, 
ante,  would  restrict  the  enumeration  to  those  children  who  had  a  fixed 
and  permanent  legal  residence  in  the  district  at  the  date  of  the  trustees' 
report.  It  now  admits  to  the  schools  upon  the  same  terms  as  residents, 
and  directs  the  trustees  to  enumerate,  all  children  over  4  and  under  21 
who,  at  the  date  of  the  report,  are  actually  in  the  district,  composing 
part  of  the  family  of  their  employers,  <fec.,  residing  at  the  time  in  the 
district,  although  such  residence,  that  is,  of  the  employers,  parents,  <fcc, 
be  temporary.     It  regards  domestics  as  composing  a  part  of  the  family 


308  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES. 

of  their  employers.  There  is  some  obscurity  in  the  section,  from  the 
fact  that  the  word  family  is  used  in  two  distinct  senses.  These,  as  given 
by  Webster,  are:  "  1.  The  collective  body  of  persons  who  live  in  one 
house  and  under  one  head  or  manager ;  a  household,  including  parents, 
children  and  servants,  and,  as  the  case  may  be,  lodgers  or  boarders. 
2.  Those  who  descend  from  a  common  progenitor ;  a  tribe  or  race ; 
kindred,  lineage."  The  statute  excludes  mere  boarders  or  lodgers ; 
while  in  the  first  part  of  the  section  it  obviously  includes  those  who  are 
in  good  faith  employed  in  the  family.  There  are,  however,  sometimes 
persons  who  pay  for  their  board  and  lodging  by  devoting  a  part  of  their 
day  to  work,  in  the  service  of  the  household,  while  the  rest  is  spent  iu 
attendance  at  school.  If  such  persons  belong  to  the  family — in  the 
second  sense  of  that  word,  as  above  quoted — of  an  inhabitant  of  any  other 
district  of  this  state,  then  they  are  not  to  be  enumerated ;  unless  their 
abode  in  the  family  of  their  employer  was  primarily  taken  with  a  view 
to  earn  their  subsistence  by  service,  and  not  as  a  mere  cover  for  their 
attending  school  in  one  district  in  preference  to  another  where  they 
might  have  attended.  The  enumeration  is  made  with  a  view  to  the 
apportionment  of  money  for  the  succeeding  year ;  and  it  is  to  determine 
what  amount  of  money  will  be  needed  for  the  education  of  those  children 
who  are  accidentally  in  it,  either  because  their  parents  or  other  permanent 
guardians  reside  there,  or  because  their  circumstances  require  them  to 
earn  a  livelihood  in  a  family,  not  that  of  their  parentage.  The  district 
which  is  bound  to  furnish  them  with  instruction,  should  receive  an 
apportionment  on  their  account ;  but  they  cannot,  arbitrarily,  select  the 
districts  in  which  they  shall  be  enumerated  or  attend  school.  The 
cases  on  pages  16,  23,  38,  49  and  91,  Digest,  ante,  taken  together,  will 
be  found  to  support  this  construction.  (See  3  Foster's  N.  H.  R.,  510.) 

As  to  a  person  who  is  not  an  inhabitant  of  some  other  district  in  this 
state,  all  the  children  belonging  to  his  family  are  to  be  reported,  and  so 
are  children  residing  in  the  district  whose  parents  or  guardians  do  not 
reside  therein,  if  such  parents  or  guardians  reside  elsewhere  than  in  a 
district  of  this  state ;  provided  the  residence  of  such  children  is  in  a 
family,  and  not  in  a  mere  boarding  school  or  other  establishment  for 
the  purpose  of  education. 

All  persons  more  than  four  and  under  twenty-one  years  of  age  are  to 
be  enumerated,  although  themselves  the  masters  or  mistresses  of  families. 

No.  147.  The  trustees  of  school  districts  shall  not  enume- 
rate and  include  in  their  annual  reports  any  Indian  children 


REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES.  309 

residing  on  Indian  reservations  where   schools  are  taught. 
(  Sec.  119,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

This  section  is  retained  as  a  part  of  the  history  of  legislation.  School 
districts  rarely  include  any  portion  of  an  Indian  reservation.  In  those 
that  do,  the  Indian  children  within  the  bounds  of  the  district  are  to  be 
enumerated  separately  and  apart  from  other  children,  for  the  reasons 
given  in  the  comment  on  the  fourth  clause  of  No.  144,  ante,  until  the 
superintendent,  in  the  exercise  of  the  power  given  by  No.  12,  shall  other- 
wise direct. 

No.  148.  All  children  included  in  the  reports  of  the  trustees 
of  any  school  district  shall  be  entitled  to  attend  the  schools 
of  such  district ;  and  whenever  it  shall  be  necessary  for  the 
accommodation  of  the  children  in  any  district,  the  trustees 
thereof  may  hire,  temporarily,  any  room  or  rooms  for  the 
keeping  of  schools  therein,  and  the  expense  thereof  shall  be  a 
charge  upon  such  district.    (Sec.  120,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

Children  over  four  and  under  five  years  of  age  are  to  be  included  in 
the  reports  of  the  trustees,  but  their  right  to  attend  school  must  be 
regarded  as  taken  away  by  the  new  definition  of  the  class  of  persons 
thus  entitled,  contained  in  the  next  section,  which  restricts  it  to  those 
over  five  years  old.  Children  of  so  tender  an  age,  as  five  or  even  six, 
can  scarcely  receive  any  benefit  from  the  literary  instruction  given  at 
a  school,  which  is  not  more  than  outweighed  by  the  injury  to  their 
health  resulting  from  confinement,  and  the  distaste  for  future  study 
which  they  imbibe.  Such  simple  elements  of  knowledge  as  they  can 
learn  are  best  imparted  to  them  at  home,  in  the  intervals  of  healthful 
play  and  the  freedom  of  domestic  intercourse. 

The  right  to  attend  schools  in  a  district  is  the  right  to  attend  some 
one  school  or  department  which,  in  the  judgment  of  the  trustees,  and  of 
the  teacher,  under  their  general  supervision,  is  best  adapted  to  the 
education  of  the  individual  scholar,  consistently  with  the  progress  of  the 
other  pupils  of  the  district.  It  is  not  the  right  of  the  parent  or  pupil 
arbitrarily  to  select  the  school  or  department  which  the  latter  shall 
attend.  The  law  has  vested  the  power  in  the  trustees  to  regulate  the 
system  of  distribution  and  classification,  and  when  this  power  is  reason- 
ably exercised,  without  being  abused  or  perverted  by  colorable  pre- 
tences, their  decision  must  be  deemed  conclusive.  (5  Cash.  Mass. 
Hep.,  208.)     The  remedy  for  an  error  on  their  part  is  to  be  found  in  an 


310  EEPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES. 

appeal.  For  a  malicious  abuse  of  their  power,  an  action  might  be  sus- 
tained in  the  name  and  for  the  benefit  of  the  child.  (14  Barb.,  222.) 
The  cases  in  which  they  may  exclude  children  will  be  considered  under 
the  next  section. 

It  is  for  the  trustees  to  judge  when  it  is  necessary,  for  the  accommo- 
.  dation  of  the  children,  to  hire  rooms  temporarily  for  the  keeping  of 
schools,  for  the  expense  of  which  they  have  the  right  to  levy  a  tax, 
without  any  vote  of  the  district.  They  are  bound  to  make  reasonable 
provision  for  the  accommodation  of  all  who  desire  to  attend  school ;  and 
if  the  school-house  is  too  small  for  them,  or  is  out  of  repair,  or  is  prac- 
tically inaccessible  to  any  considerable  number,  from  severe  snows  in 
winter,  or  other  fortuitous  circumstances,  they  should  not  hesitate  to 
exercise  the  power.  They  are  not  put  in  office  for  the  purpose  of 
saving  money  to  the  tax  payers,  but  to  see  to  it,  that  all  the  children 
obtain  instruction,  or  owe  their  failure  to  do  so  to  the  wilful  neglect  of 
themselves  or  their  pareuts. 

No.  149.  Common  schools  in  the  several  school  districts  in 
this  state  shall  be  free  to  all  persons  residing  in  the  district, 
over  five  and  under  twenty-one  years  of  age,  as  hereinafter 
provided.  Persons  not  resident  ot  a  district  may  be  admitted 
into  the  schools  kept  therein,  with  the  approbation  in  writing 
of  the  trustees  thereof,  or  a  majority  of  them.  (Sec.  1,  chap. 
151  o/185I.) 

The  power  to  admit  non-resident  children  to  the  schools  of  a  district 
is  vested  exclusively  in  its  trustees.  (Diyes,,,  pp.  95,  100.)  The  latter 
case  contains  the  necessary  instruction  as  to  the  manner 'in  which  they 
should  exercise  it.  Pupils  are  not  to  be  encouraged  to  withdraw  from 
the  schools  of  their  own  districts.  By  doing  so,  they  enfeeble  its  pecu- 
niary resources,  aggravate  the  rate  bills  of  their  neighbors,  and  diminish 
the  inducements  of  their  parents  and  friends  to  exert  their  influence  to 
maintain  a  good  school  in  their  own  district.  A  teacher,  moreover, 
ought  not  to  have  the  additional  labor  thrown  upon  him  of  instructing 
non-residents,  without  his  compensation  being  increased,  unless  he 
entered  into  his  contract  with  full  knowledge  of  the  number  he  was  to 
instruct. 

The  right  to  enjoy  the  benefit  of  common  schools,  established  for  all 
the  inhabitants,  is,  as  is  well  put  in  8  Gush.  Mass.  R.,  164,  "a  common, 
not  an  exclusive  personal  right ;  then,  like  other  common  rights,  that  of 
way    for   instance,    it   must   be  exercised   under  such    limitations  and 


REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES.  311 

restrictions,  that  it  shall  not  interfere  with  the  equal  and  coextensive 
rights  of  others.  Take  the  case  of  contagious  disease :  can  it  be 
doubted  that  the  presence  of  a  pupil  infected  could  be  lawfully  prohibited, 
not  for  any  fault  or  crime  or  wrong  conduct,  but  simply  because  his 
attempt  to  insist  on  his  right  to  attend,  under  such  circumstances,  would 
be  dangerous  and  noxious,  and  so  an  interruption  of  the  equal  and  com- 
mon right?"  In  that  case,  the  court  held  that  the  trustees  have  the 
right  to  exclude  a  child  for  open,  gross  immorality,  manifested  by  licen- 
tious propensities,  language,  manners  and  habits,  though  not  manifested 
by  acts  of  licentiousness  or  immorality  within  the  school,  deeming  it 
"  as  necessary,  in  the  unreserved  intercourse  of  pupils  of  the  same  school, 
as  well  without  as  within  its  precincts,  to  preserve  the  pure  minded, 
ingenuous  and  unsuspecting  children  of  both  sexes  from  the  contamina- 
ting influence  of  those  of  depraved  sentiments  and  vicious  propensities 
and  habits,  as  from  those  infected  with  contagious  diseases." 

The  analogy  suggests  the  rule.  Children  may  be  excluded,  not  for 
punishment  merely,  but  for  the  protection  of  others  from  such  injurious 
example  and  influence  as  would  entirely  defeat  the  purposes  for  which 
schools  are  instituted.  It  is  to  be  remembered  that  among  the  objects 
of  instruction  is  not  only  to  deter  from  vice,  but  to  reclaim  those  who 
are  capable  of  reformation,  and  to  correct  bad  habits  which  may  result 
from  parental  neglect,  or,  what  is  more  deplorable,  from  parental  exam- 
ple. To  deal  gently  with  the  erring,  and  especially  with  erring  child- 
hood, is  the  dictate  of  humanity,  policy  and  duty.  To  abandon  them 
to  their  evil  courses  is  a  step  involving  the  most  serious  responsibility, 
never  to  be  taken  until  remonstrance  and  persuasion  have  been 
exhausted. 

Such  violent  insubordination  against  reasonable  and  proper  regulations 
of  the  school  as  to  render  it  impossible  to  maintain  necessary  discipline 
and  order,  will  justify  the  trustees  in  the  expulsion  of  a  pupil ;  but  it  is 
their  duty  to  see,  before  resorting  to  the  final  extremity,  whether  there 
may  not  be  fault  on  the  side  of  the  teacher  as  well  as  the  scholar,  and 
to  endeavor,  in  such  case,  to  reconcile  the  difference,  without  impairing 
the  self-respect  of  either  party.  Children  have  rights  as  well  as  their 
elders ;  they  are  as  keenly  sensible  of  oppression,  and  naturally  revolt 
against  power,  wantonly  exercised  for  the  sake  of  exhibiting  itself. 
Being  the  weaker  party,  they  suffer  in  their  school  days  a  great  deal  of 
injustice  and  often  of  outrage.  The  best  of  teachers  have  human  infir- 
mities, and  it  is  an  incident  of  their  trying  calling  to  aggravate  them.     It 


312  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES. 

is  for  the  trustees  to  temper  power  with  benignity,  and  administer  justice 
in  the  spirit  of  tolerance  and  mercy. 

No.  ibU.  Where  a  school  district  is  formed  out  of  two  or 
more  adjoining  towns  (not  in  the  same  county),  it  shall  be  the 
duty  of  the  trustees  of  such  district  to  make  and  transmit  a 
report  to  the  [school  commissioner]  for  each  of  the  towns 
out  of  which  such  district  shall  be  formed,  within  the  same 
time  and  in  the  same  manner  as  is  required  by  sections  one 
hundred  and  fifteen  and  one  hundred  and  sixteen  of  this  act ; 
distinguishing  the  number  of  children  over  the  age  of  four  and 
under  twenty-one  years,  residing  in  each  part  of  a  district 
which  shall  be  in  a  different  town  from  the  other  parts,  and 
the  number  of  children  taught,  and  the  amount  of  school 
moneys  received  from  each  part  of  the  district.  ( Sec.  121, 
chap.  480  of  1847.) 

The  words  in  italics,  within  the  parenthesis,  do  not  belong  to  the  text 
of  the  statute.  They  are  inserted  to  make  it  conform  to  No.  67,  ante. 
The  sections  referred  to  in  the  text,  are  Nos.  143  and  144. 

No.  15l.  Where  any  neighborhood  shall  be  set  off  by  itself, 
the  inhabitants  of  such  separate  neighborhood  shall  annually 
meet  together  and  choose  one  trustee ;  whose  duty  it  shall 
be,  every  year,  within  the  time  limited  for  making  district 
reports,  to  make  and  transmit  a  report  in  writing,  bearing 
date  on  the  first  day  of  January,  in  the  year  in  which  it  shall 
be  transmitted,  to  the  [town  clerk]  of  the  town  from  which 
such  neighborhood  shall  be  set  off,  specifying  the  number  of 
children,  over  the  age  of  four  and  under  twenty-one  years, 
residing  in  such  neighborhood,  the  amount  of  moneys  received 
from  the  town  superintendent  [and  supervisor]  since  the  date 
of  last  report,  and  the  manner  in  which  the  same  has  been 
expended.  (Sec.  122,  chap.  480  of  3847,  modified  in  conformity 
to  No.  67.) 

A  separate  neighborhood  constitutes  a  part  of  a  district  in  some 
adjoining  state,  within  which  its  school-house  is  situated,  and  whose 
affairs  in  general  are  managed  by  officers  under  a  foreign  jurisdiction. 
The  trustee  mentioned  in  the  statute  is  to  be  elected  by  the  inhabitants 
of  this  state  within  such  district,  and  must  himself  be  an  inhabitant  of 
that  portion  thereof  within  the  boundaries  of  New-York,  so  that  he  may 
be  amenable  to  its  laws.     The  commissioner  cannot  receive  a  report 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  313 

from  a  citizen  of  another  state,  and  if  one  is  tendered,  should  give  notice 
to  the  inhabitants  to  elect  another  person  as  trustee. 

No.  152.  Every  trustee  of  a  school  district  or  separate 
neighborhood,  who  shall  wilfully  sign  a  false  report  to  the 
[school  commissioner]  of  his  town,  with  the  intent  of  causing 
such  [school  commissioner]  to  apportion  and  pay  to  his  district 
or  neighborhood  a  larger  sum  than  its  just  proportion  of  the 
school  moneys  of  the  town,  shall  for  each  offence  forfeit  the 
sum  of  twenty-five  dollars,  and  shall  also  be  deemed  guilty  of 
a  misdemeanor.  ( Sec.  123,  chap.  480  of  1847. ) 

All  the  trustees  who  jointly  commit  the  offence  may  be  jointly  sued. 
(1  Denio,  540.)  As  to  an  omission,  the  rule  is  otherwise.  In  order  to 
put  the  trustees  clearly  in  the  wrong,  and  disprove  any  pretence  of 
inadvertance  or  misapprehension  on  their  part,  the  commissioner  should 
notify  them  of  any  error  which  he  finds  in  their  report  and  request  them 
to  correct  it,  before  reporting  them  to  the  supervisor  for  prosecution. 
In  order  to  present  for  decision  any  question  involving  reasonable  doubt, 
the  simplest  way  would  be  for  him  to  inform  them  in  writing  at  the 
same  time,  and  that  as  early  as  possible,  that  he  declines  making  any 
apportionment  to  their  district  on  account  of  certain  persons,  naming  them, 
included  in  their  enumeration  of  pupils,  and  that  his  decision  thereupon 
will  become  conclusive  in  thirty  days,  unless  within  that  time  they  forward 
an  appeal  to  the  State  Superintendent,  duly  verified,  and  serve  a  copy 
upon  him,  or  unite  with  him  in  a  written  statement  of  the  facts  to  be 
submitted.  It  would  be  well  for  him  to  proceed  to  state  the  facts  as  he 
understands  them,  and  request  them  to  signify  their  concurrence  therein 
by  signing  the  same.  If  an  apportionment  ought  to  be  made  before  a 
final  decision  is  obtained,  he  should  make  it  contingent  in  respect  to  the 
pupils  in  dispute. 

No.  153.  All  property  now  vested  in  the  trustees  of  any 
school  district  for  the  use  of  schools  in  the  district,  or  which 
may  be  hereafter  transferred  to  such  trustees  for  that  purpose, 
shall  be  held  by  them  as  a  corporation.  (Sec.  124,  chap.  480 
o/1847.) 

The  original  provision  of  the  act  of  1819,  §  29,  chap.  161,  from 
which  the  above  is  taken,  was  enacted  for  the  purpose  of  vesting  in  the 
trustees  property  which  had  been  dedicated  or  granted  for  school  objects 
before  its  passage.     The  principal  incidents  of  a  corporation  are,  to  have 

[Code.]  34 


314  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

perpetual  succession  and  existence  by  its  corporate  name,  where  no 
period  is  limited  by  its  charter,  and  the  capacity  to  hold  real  and 
personal  estate  for  its  corporate  purposes,  as  an  artificial  body,  wholly 
distinct  from  the  individuals  who  from  time  to  time  may  compose  it. 

No.  154.  The  trustees  of  each  school  district  shall,  once  in 
each  year,  render  to  the  district,  at  its  annual  district  meeting, 
■a  just  and  true  account,  in  writing,  of  all  moneys  received  by 
them  respectively  for  the  use  of  their  district,  and  of  the 
manner  in  which  the  same  shall  have  been  expended,  which 
account  shall  be  delivered  to  the  district  clerk,  and  be  filed 
and  recorded  by  him.  (Sec.  125,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

Each  trustee  is  bound  to  render  an  account,  in  writing,  of  the  money 
which  he  has  received  and  expended.  They  may,  and  indeed  should, 
unite  and  present  one  account,  stating  the  receipts  and  disbursements 
of  all ;  but  as  each  of  them  is  severally  liable  to  a  penalty  for  omitting  to 
do  so,  the  way  for  him  to  escape  it  is  to  be  prepared  with  an  account 
of  his  own  financial  operations  during  the  year,  and  submit  it  to  the 
annual  meeting."  He  is  not  entitled  to  charge  in  the  account,  or  to  retain, 
any  sum  to  remunerate  him  for  his  personal  services  as  trustee.  (Digest, 
p.  84.)  The  meeting  has  no  duty  to  perform  in  examining  the  account 
and  passing  upon  the  question  of  its  correctness.  When  an  account  has 
been  rendered,  the  supervisor  may  bring  an  action  for  the  penalty,  if  it 
is  false,  and  the  trustee  who  made  it  remains  in  office ;  but  the  trustee 
will  not  be  removed  until  its  falsehood  shall  have  been  established  in 
such  a  suit.  (Digest,  p.  102.)  The  district  meeting  have  no  power  to 
prevent  him,  or  the  successors  of  the  defaulting  trustee,  from  bringing 
an  action.  (Digest,  p.  25.) 

No.  155.  Any  balance  of  such  moneys,  which  shall  appear 
from  such  account  to  remain  in  the  hands  of  the  trustees,  or 
either  of  them,  at  the  time  of  rendering  the  account,  shall 
immediately  be  paid  to  some  one  or  more  of  their  successors 
in  office.  (Sec.  126,  chap.  480  o/'1847.) 

When  this  section  was  originally  enacted,  all  the  trustees  went  out 
of  office  at  each  annual  meeting,  and  were,  of  course,  bound  immediately 
to  pay  over  any  money  in  their  hands  to  their  successors.  But  one 
trustee  in  office  has  the  same  right  to  the  custody  of  public  money  as 
another;  unless  the  trustees  by  a  resolution  have  constituted  one  of 
their  number  treasurer,  or  have  appointed  a  bank  or  other  trustworthy 


DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES.  315 

depositary  to  receive  it.  Among  the  general  powers  conferred  by  the 
Revised  Statutes  upon  every  corporation,  as  such  —  and  the  trustees  are 
a  corporation  in  respect  to  the  property  of  the  district — one  is:  "To 
make  by-laws,  not  inconsistent  with  any  existing  law,  for  the  manage- 
ment of  its  property."  It  would  often  be  a  judicious  exercise  of  this 
power  to  constitute  one  of  their  number  treasurer,  requiring  him  to  give 
adequate  security  to  the  trustees,  in  their  corporate  capacity  and  name 
of  office,  and  directing  the  collector  to  pay  all  taxes  and  rate  bills  to 
him.  If  a  third  person  were  appointed  to  act  as  the  treasurer,  where 
a  convenient  one  can  be  found  who  is  willing  to  give  adequate  security, 
it  would  have  the  further  advantage,  that  no  disbursement  could  be 
made  by  him,  except  upon  the  written  order  of  two  of  the  trustees.  In 
such  a  case,  all  of  the  trustees  would  be  responsible,  if  they  took  insuffi- 
cient security  from  the  person  entrusted  with  the  money. 

In  regard  to  the  liability  of  one  trustee  for  the  act  of  another,  the 
general  rule  is,  that  it  is  the  duty  of  each  one  to  do  all  in  his  power  to 
protect  the  trust  property  from  loss  by  the  acts  of  his  colleagues.  He 
ought  not,  therefore,  to  join  in  doing  any  act  or  in  carrying  into  effect 
any  arrangement  by  which  the  trust  property  is  unnecessarily  taken  out 
of  the  joint  protection  and  control  of  all  the  trustees,  and  is  placed 
within  the  sole  power  and  at  the  mercy  of  one  or  more  of  their  number, 
without  expecting  to  be  held  responsible  for  the  consequences.  It  is 
laid  down  in  Hill  on  Trustees,  p.  310,  that  as  a  general  rule  the  trustee 
so  acting  will  be  held  liable  in  case  of  a  loss  by  the  default  of  his  col- 
league. There  are  exceptions,  as  in  the  case  where  money  is  committed 
to  one  for  the  purpose  of  making  an  immediate  payment ;  but  money 
ought  not  to  be  suffered  to  remain  in  the  hands  of  one  trustee,  for  any 
considerable  time,  without  security.  Their  safety  lies  in  considering 
themselves  as  presumptively  liable  for  all  money  which  comes  into  the 
hands  of  any  one  of  them,  and  conducting  with  the  vigilant  care  to  its 
speedy  disbursement  or  ample  security  which  such  a  belief  is  calculated 
to  inspire. 

No.  156.  Every  trustee  who  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  ren- 
der such  account,  or  to  pay  over  any  balance  so  found  in  his 
hands,  shall  for  each  offence  forfeit  the  sum  of  twenty-five 
dollars,  (  Sec.  127,  chap.  430  o/1847.) 

It  has  been  held,  under  this  section  (1  Denio,  230),  that  "it  plainly 
contemplates  a  several  penalty  upon  each  and  every  trustee  who  shall 


316  DUTY  OF  TRUSTEES. 

so  neglect  or  refuse  to  perform  his  duty,  and  not  a  penalty  upon  all, 
jointly,  who  may  be  in  default.  If  more  than  one  is  in  default,  each 
must  be  sued." 

No.  157.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  his  successors  in  office  to 
prosecute  without  delay,  in  their  name  of  office,  for  the 
recovery  of  such  forfeiture ;  and  the  moneys  recovered  shall 
be  applied  by  them  to  the  use  and  benefit  of  their  district 
schools.  (Sec.  128,  chap.  480  </ 1847.) 

This  section  takes  effect  only  when  the  trustee  in  default  has  gone 
out  of  office.  He  can  have  no  successors  until  that  event ;  but  when  it 
has  happened,  the  trustees  in  office  are  his  successors,  although  they 
may  have  been  his  colleagues,  and  no  person  has  been  appointed  or 
elected  to  fill  the  vacancy.  Provision  is  made  in  a  subsequent  section 
for  prosecuting  a  defaulting  trustee,  still  in  office,  by  the  supervisor. 

No.  158.  Such  successors  shall  also  have  the  same  remedies 
for  the  recovery  of  any  unpaid  balance,  in  the  hands  of  a  former 
trustee  or  his  representatives,  as  are  given  to  the  town 
[supervisor]  against  a  former  town  superintendent  and  his 
representatives  ;  and  the  moneys  recovered  shall  be  applied 
by  them  to  the  use  of  their  district,  in  the  same  manner  as  if 
they  had  been  paid  without  suit.  (Sec.  129,  chap.  480  of 
1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  53. ) 

No.  159.  Every  trustee  of  a  school  district  who  shall,  while 
in  office,  neglect  or  refuse  annually  to  render  an  account  of 
the  moneys  received  by  him  as  such  trustee,  shall,  for  each 
offence,  forfeit  the  sum  of  twenty-five  dollars  ;  and  it  shall  be 
the  duty  of  the  [supervisor]  of  the  town  in  which  such  trustee 
may  reside  to  prosecute  without  delay,  in  his  name  of 
office,  for  the  recovery  of  such  forfeiture ;  and  the  moneys 
recovered  shall  be  applied  by  such  [supervisor]  to  the  use 
and  benefit  of  the  district  school  of  the  district  to  which  such 
defaulting  trustee  shall  belong.  ( Sec.  130,  chap.  480  of  1847, 
modified  in  conformity  to  No.  53. ) 

The  action  is  to  be  brought  by  the  supervisor  of  the  town  in  which 
the  trustee  resides,  so  that,  if  two  or  more  trustees  are  in  default,  resid- 
ing in  different  towns,  actions  must  be  brought  by  as  many  different 
supervisors. 


APPEALS.  317 

No.  160.  Such  [supervisor]  shall  also  have  the  same  reme- 
dies for  the  recovery  of  any  unpaid  balance  of  moneys,  in  the 
hands  of  such  delinquent  trustee  in  office,  as  are  given  to  the 
[supervisor]  in  office  against  a  former  town  superintendent ; 
and  the  moneys  recovered  shall  be  applied  by  such  town 
superintendent  to  the  use  of  the  district  to  which  the  same 
may  belong,  and  be  paid  over  to  the  trustee  or  trustees  of 
such  district  who  are  not  in  default.  ( Sec.  131,  chap.  480  of 
1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  No.  53. ) 

The  action,  like  that  under  the  preceding  section,  is  to  be  brought  by 
the  supervisor  of  the  town  in  which  the  defaulter  resides.  In  order  to 
justify  such  action  against  a  trustee  in  office,  it  must  appear  that  he  has 
refused  to  apply  the  money  in  his  hands  to  the  service  of  the  district, 
in  payment  of  a  valid  demand  against  it,  or  in  execution  of  some  duty 
imposed  upon  the  trustees  by  vote  of  the  district,  or  by  law  in  cases, 
where  they  are  authorized  to  make  expenditures  without  the  vote  of 
the  district,  or  that  he  has  refused  or  omitted,  after  a  demand,  to  deposit 
such  balance,  in  compliance  with  a  resolution  of  the  trustees. 


APPEALS. 

No.  161.  Any  person  conceiving  himself  aggrieved,  in  con- 
sequence of  any  decision  made, 

1.  By  any  school  district  meeting  ; 

2.  By  the  [school  commissioner]  in  the  forming  or  altering, 
or  in  refusing  to  form  or  alter  any  school  district,  or  in  refus- 
ing to  pay  any  school  moneys  to  any  sucli  district ; 

3.  By  the  trustees  of  any  district  in  paying  any  teacher, 
or  in  refusing  to  pay  him,  or  in  refusing  to  admit  any  scholar 
gratuitously  into  any  school ; 

4.  Or  concerning  any  other  matter  under  the  present  title, 
may  appeal  to  the  superintendent,  who  is  hereby  authorized 
and  required  to  examine  and  decide  the  same,  and  the  decision 
of  the  State  Superintendent  shall  be  final  and  conclusive. 
(Sec.  132,  chap.  48  of  1847.) 

This  section  was  included,  as  it  is  urderstood,  by  a  clerical  error  in 
the  engrossment  of  §  16,  chap.  382  of  1849,  among  those  thereby 
repealed.  The  repealing  section  was  amended  by  chap.  78  of  1853,  so 
as  to  omit  §  132  from  the  list  of  sections  repealed  in  chap.  480  of  1847, 
and  thereby  to  restore  and  reenact  it.     It  may  be  worth  while  to  state 


318  APPEALS. 

that,  while  the  repealing  clause  of  the  statute  of  1849  was  in  force,  the 
jurisdiction  of  the  State  Superintendent  to  hear  and  decide  appeals 
might  have  been  upheld  by  virtue  of  other  statutes.  By  §  7,  chap.  133 
of  1843,  all  appeals  then  authorized  by  law  (and  the  law  then  in  force 
was  identical  with  No.  161)  were  required  to  be  first  presented  to  the 
county  superintendents.  Upon  the  abolition  of  the  office  of  county 
superintendents,  in  1847,  it  was  enacted  by  chap.  388  of  that  year  as 
follows : 

"§  1.  All  appeals,  now  authorized  by  law  to  be  brought  to  a  county 
superintendent  of  common  schools,  may,  after  the  third  day  of  December, 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty -seven,  be  brought  directly  to  the 
superintendent  of  common  schools,  who  is  hereby  authorized  and 
required  to  examine  and  decide  the  same,  and  whose  decision  in  the 
premises  shall  be  final  and  conclusive." 

This  statute  of  1847  has  never  been  repealed,  and  is  an  independent 

•  authority  for  the  jurisdiction  of  the  State  Superintendent. 

The  supreme  court,  in  3  Denio,  177,  declare  that  "this  provision 
(No.  161)  was  intended  as  a  cheap  and  expeditious  mode  of  settling 
most  if  not  all  of  the  difficulties  and  disputes  arising  in  the  course  of 
the  execution  of  the  law  organizing  and  regulating  common  schools. 
The  legislature  has  virtually  declared  that  where  a  party  will  forego 
that  convenient  method  of  adjusting  such  a  controversy  as  the  present, 
and  resort  to  the  ordinary  courts,  it  shall  be  at  his  own  expense  as 
regards  costs."  In  11  Wend.,  91,  the  court  made  substantially  the 
same  remarks,  when  refusing  to  give  relief  by  an  action  of  trespass 
against  trustees  for  their  proceedings  in  selling  the  plaintiff's  property 
under  a  tax  list  and  warrant  which  were  in  more  than  one  respect 
erroneous.  A  further  reason  for  preferring  the  remedy  by  appeal  to  a 
common  law  action  is,  that  the  superintendent  can  dispose  of  all  the 
questions  connected  with  the  case  in  a  single  decision ;  where  a  proceed- 
ing is  wrong,  he  can  not  only  reverse  it,  but  direct  the  appropriate 
remedy,  so  as  to  redress  all  persons  who  have  been  injuriously  affected; 
while  an  action  at  law  enures  only  to  the  benefit  of  the  person  who 
brings  it,  and  only  gives  pecuniary  damages,  without  substituting  a  cor- 
rect proceeding  in  the  place  of  an  erroneous  one.  For  the  extent  of  the 
Superintendent's  powers  upon  appeal,  see  Digest,  pp.  12,  13  and  14. 

*  No.  162.  Any  person  conceiving  himself  aggrieved  by  any 
act  or  decision  of  any  trustees  of  school  districts,  concerning 
district  libraries,  or  the  books  therein,  or  the  use  of  such 
books,  or  of  any  librarian,  or  of  any  district  meeting  in  rela- 


APPEALS.  .3 1 0 

tion  to  their  school  library,  may  appeal  to  the  State  Superin- 
tendent in  the  same  manner  as  provided  by  law.  (S/c.  140, 
chap.  480  of  1847.) 

Under  this  and  the  preceding  section,  appeals  may  be  made  by  any 
person  conceiving  himself  aggrieved  in  consequence  of: 

1.  Any  decision  made  by  any  school  district  meeting;  this  may  be 
either  by  its  passing  or  by  its  rejecting  any  resolution  offered  for  its 
consideration.  A  resolution  passed  by  the  meeting  presents  the  point 
upon  its  own  face.  Where  an  inhabitant  wishes  to  raise  a  question 
upon  its  refusal  to  take  such  action  as  he  desires,  his  proper  course  is  to 
present  a  written  resolution,  embodying  the  proposition  he  desires 
adopted,  and  get  a  vote  upon  it ; 

2.  Any  decision  made  by  the  school  commissioner  alone,  or  by  him 
with  the  supervisor  and  town  clerk,  in  forming  or  altering,  or  in  refusing 
to  form  or  alter  any  school  districts,  or  in  any  erroneous  apportionment 
of  the  public  money,  in  refusing  to  include  a  district  in  the  apportion- 
ment for  teachers'  wages  or  for  library  when  entitled  to  be  included,  or 
in  apportioning  to  it  upon  the  basis  of  a  smaller  number  of  pupils  than 
it  has  reported,  or  in  apportioning  to  it  a  larger  sum  than  that  to  which 
it  is  entitled,  to  the  injury  of  other  districts ;  and  in  fact  any  official 
decision,  act  or  proceeding,  in  discharging  or  refusing  to  discharge  any 
duty  imposed  by  law,  or  by  the  regulations  of  the  superintendent,  made 
in  pursuance  of  lavr,  or  incident  to  the  duties  of  his  office ; 

3.  Any  decision  made  by  the  trustees  in  paying  a  teacher  or  refusing 
to  pay,  or  refusing  to  admit  any  scholar  gratuitously  into  any  school ;  in 
making  out  any  tax  list  or  rate  bill,  or  in  any  act  or  proceeding  what- 
ever which  they  undertake  to  perform  officially,  or  which,  being  bound 
by  law  or  lawful  regulations  of  the  superintendent,  or  as  incident  to  the 
duties  of  their  office,  they  refuse  or  neglect  to  perform.  In  order  to  fix 
them  with  a  responsibility  for  neglect  to  discharge  a  duty,  and  as  pre- 
liminary to  an  appeal,  it  would  be  well  for  the  persons  conceiving 
themselves  aggrieved  to  unite  in  a  written  request  to  the  trustees  to 
perform  the  act  desired,  or  to  give  written  notice  that  they  have  decided 
not  to  perform  it.  They  may  properly  designate,  in  such  request,  a 
reasonable  time  for  the  performance  of  the  duty,  and  therein  state  that 
the  |  neglect  of  the  trustees  to  discharge  the  duty  within  the  time  so 
specified  will  be  regarded  as  equivalent  to  a  refusal,  and  as  justifying  an 
appeal,  or,  if  the  case  requires  it,  an  application  for  the  removal  of  the 
trustees  from  office ; 


320  APPEALS. 

4.  Any  act  or  decision  by  the  trustees,  or  of  the  librarian,  or  of  a  dis- 
trict meeting,  concerning  the  library  or  the  books  therein,  or  the  use  of 
such  books ; 

5.  Under  the  general  clause  "  concerning  any  other  matter  under 
the  present  title,"  which  includes  the  whole  of  this  Code,  any  decision 
by  any  school  officer,  affecting  the  interests  of  a  district  or  its  inhabitants 
in  regard  to  the  school  laws,  may  form  the  subject  of  an  appeal.  There 
may  be  cases  where  the  powers  of  the  superintendent  are  inadequate  to 
give  redress,  as  there  may  be  cases  in  which  the  discretion  of  the  local 
officer  ought  to  control,  but  whether  a  particular  case  is  such  an  one, 
must  be  determined  as  the  question  arises. 

By  whom  appeals  are  to  be  made.  No  person  can  sustain  an  appeal 
unless  he  is  aggrieved,  that  is,  injured  in  his  rights  by  the  act  or  decision 
of  which  he  complains.  Generally,  every  inhabitant  of  a  district  is 
aggrieved  by  the  wrongful  act  or  omission  of  a  trustee  or  school  com- 
missioner, by  which  money  or  property  is  disposed  of,  or  not  secured 
for  the  benefit  of  the  district.  But  no  one  is  aggrieved  by  another 
being  included  in  a  tax  list  or  rate  bill,  although  other  inhabitants  are 
by  the  omission  of  one  who  should  be  taxed;  and  appeals  may  be 
made  by  trustees  in  behalf  of  their  district  whenever  they  are  aggrieved. 

Before  giving  the  rules  which  have  been  made  to  regulate  the 
practice  upon  appeals,  it  is  proper  to  call  attention  to  some  general 
principles  in  relation  to  the  mode  of  drawing  them  up;  In  the  first 
place,  the  department  wants  facts,  and  not  arguments,  far  less  injurious 
imputations  upon  the  motives  of  parties.  The  facts  should  be  distinctly 
averred,  so  that  an  indictment  for  perjury  would  lie  if  they  are  wilfully 
misstated.  Therefore,  they  should  not  be  stated  by  way  of  recital  under 
a  "  whereas,"  or  in  any  similar  indirect  way.  Every  material  fact  should 
be  stated  with  all  practicable  particularity  as  to  time,  quantities,  numbers, 
&c.  Where  a  statement  is  ambiguous  or  doubtful  in  meaning,  that 
construction  is  adopted  which  is  most  unfavorable  to  the  party  making  it. 
The  appellant  should  make  out  his  own  case ;  so  that  if  no  answer  is 
put  in,  the  superintendent  will  have,  in  the  appeal  itself  all  the  facts  to 
inform  him  what  order  ought  to  be  made.  No  decision  can  be  based 
upon  any  facts  except  those  which  are  stated  in  the  appeal,  and  which 
the  opposite  party  has  had  the  opportunity  to  controvert,  although  such 
facts  may  have  been  brought  to  the  knowledge  of  the  superintendent  in 
some  other  way.  The  record  itself  must  contain  enough  to  support  the 
decision. 


LETTERS  OF  INQUIRY.  321 

It  will  conduce  much  to  the  speedy  disposition  of  a  case  that  the 
papers  be  fairly  and  legibly  written,  upon  foolscap  paper  when  practi- 
cable, in  the  fashion  of  legal  pleadings ;  that  is,  the  leaves  written  on 
both  sides  are  attached  at  the  top,  and  not  at  the  side,  so  that  the 
bottom  of  the  first  page  is  the  top  of  the  second.  They  should  be 
endorsed  with  the  title  of  the  case,  in  such  a  form  as  to  indicate,  briefly, 
what  is  the  act  or  decision  complained  of,  and  the  district,  town  and 
county  which  it  affects.  The  papers  on  each  side  should  also  be 
endorsed  with  the  name  of  the  post  office  at  which  the  party  sending  it 
desires  to  be  addressed. 


LETTERS  OF  INQUIRY  AND  EX  PARTE  APPLICATIONS. 

Perhaps  the  most  onerous  duty  of  the  Superintendent  of  Public  In- 
struction is  one  which  is  not  mentioned  in  the  statutes.  It  is  that  of 
replying  to  applications  for  advice  respecting  the  construction  of  the 
school  laws,  and  the  legality  of  proceedings  of  district  meetings,  of 
trustees,  and  other  school  officers.  The  effort  has  been  made  to  give  in 
this  volume  a  full  exposition,  under  the  appropriate  section,  of  the  ques- 
tions which  have  been  found,  by  the  experience  of  the  department,  to 
embarrass  officers  in  the  discharge  of  their  duties.  If,  however,  after 
examination  of  the  instructions  herein  contained,  it  is  conceived  neces- 
sary to  apply  to  the  department  for  further  information,  it  must  be 
borne  in  mind : 

1.  That  no  decision  can  be  made,  on  any  subject  affecting  in  any 
manner  the  rights  or  interests  of  other  parties,  without  both  sides  having 
been  heard  or  having  been  invited  to  present  their  statements.  This 
occurs  only  when  an  appeal  is  regularly  brought  in  the  mode  prescribed 
by  the  regulations,  or  where  all  parties  have  signed,  and  united  in  trans- 
mitting, a  statement  of  facts  to  which  they  agree ; 

2.  That  an  opinion,  given  under  any  other  circumstances,  must  be 
regarded  as  valid  only  so  far  as  the  statement  on  which  it  is  founded 
represents  fairly  and  fully  all  the  facts  pertinent  to  the  case.  It  fre- 
quently happens  that  two  parties,  applying  for  advice  upon  the  same 
question,  state  the  facts  so  differently  that  they  receive  very  dissimilar 
replies,  and  are  thus  confirmed  in  their  difference  of  opinion,  instead  of 
being  reconciled.  No  opinion  should  be  asked  upon  an  abstract 
question  or  a  hypothetical  case;  but  the  actual  facts  out  of  which  the 
question  arises  should  be  clearly  and  briefly  stated,  with  all  practicable 
certainty  as  to  dates  and  number,  and  in  such  a  manner  as  to  indicate 

rCoDE.l  41 


322  RULES  RESPECTING  APPEALS. 

the  object  of  the  inquiry.  The  last  is  advisable,  because  a  proceeding 
may  be  legally  good  and  sufficient  for  some  purposes,  and  as  against  some 
persons,  while  it  is  invalid  for  other  purposes  and  against  other  parties. 
The  facts  should  be  stated  in  contradistinction  to  mere  evidence,  on  the 
one  hand,  and  to  the  writer's  inferences  as  to  the  effect  of  those  facts,  on 
the  other. 

To  facilitate  the  business  of  the  department,  and  the  prompt  and  cor- 
rect transmission  of  answers  to  its  correspondents,  it  is  desirable  that  all 
letters  should  be  written  on  foolscap  paper,  with  a  clear  margin  of  one 
inch  on  the  inside  edge  of  the  page.  They  should  always  specify  the 
number  of  the  school  district,  together  with  the  name  of  the  town  or 
towns  of  which  it  constitutes  a  part,  and  the  county  in  which  the  latter 
are  situated.  The  writer  should,  in  all  cases,  no  matter  how  frequently 
he  may  write,  state  at  what  post-office  he  desires  to  be  addressed. 

Whenever  reference  may  be  necessary  to  any  previous  letter  from  the 
department,  its  number  should  be  given.  This  enables  the  department 
to  ascertain  at  once  its  contents  and  those  of  the  paper  to  which  it  was 
a  reply. 

Every  application  for  the  exercise  of  any  legal  power  of  the  depart- 
ment, as  for  special  permission  to  be  included  in  the  apportionment 
of  public  money,  &c,  must  be  supported  by  an  affidavit  stating  the  facts 
on  which  it  is  based.  When  any  person  is  interested  in  opposing  it, 
the  application  must  be  accompanied  with  proof  of  service  of  a  copy 
thereof  on  sucli  party,  in  the  same  manner  as  required  upon  appeals. 

RULES  RESPECTING  APPEALS. 

1.  An  appeal  must  be  in  writing,  addressed  "To  the  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction,"  and  signed  by  the  appellant.  When  made  by 
the  trustees  of  a  district,  it  must  be  signed  by  all  the  trustees,  or  a 
reason  must  be  given  for  the  omission  of  any,  verified  by  the  oath  of 
the  appellant,  or  of  some  person  acquainted  with  such  reason. 

2.  A  copy  of  the  appeal,  and  of  all  the  statements,  maps  and  papers 
intended  to  be  presented  in  support  of  it,  with  the  affidavit  in  verification 
of  the  same,  must  be  served  on  the  officers  whose  act  or  decision  is  com- 
plained of,  or  some  of  them  ;  or  if  it  be  from  the  decision  or  proceeding  of 
a  district  meeting,  upon  the  district  clerk  or  one  of  the  trustees,  whose 
duty  it  is  to  cause  information  of  such  appeal  to  be  given  to  the  inhabi- 
tants who  voted  for  the  decision  or  proceeding  appealed  from.  Immedi- 
ately after  the  service  of  such  copy,  the  original,  together  with  an  affidavit 


RULES  RESPECTING  APPEALS.  323 

proving  the  service  of  a  copy  thereof,  and  stating  the  time  and  manner  of 
the  service  and  the  name  and  official  character  of  the  person  upon  whom 
such  service  was  made,  must  be  transmitted  to  the  Department  of  Public 
Instruction,  at  Albany.  If  an  answer  is  received  to  an  appeal  which 
has  not  been  transmitted  to  the  department,  such  appeal  will  be 
dismissed. 

3.  Such  service  must  be  made  and  the  original  sent  to  the  depart- 
ment within  thirty  days  after  the  making  of  the  decision  or  the 
performance  of  the  act  complained  of,  or  within  that  time  after  the 
knowledge  of  the  cause  of  complaint  came  to  the  appellant,  or  some 
satisfactory  excuse  must  be  rendered,  in  the  appeal,  for  the  delay. 

4.  The  party  on  whom  the  appeal  was  served  must,  within  ten  days 
from  the  time  of  such  service,  answer  the  same,  either  by  concurring  in 
a  statement  of  facts  with  the  appellant,  or  by  a  separate  answer.  Such 
statement  and  answer  must  be  signed  by  all  the  trustees  or  other 
officers  whose  act,  omission  or  decision  is  appealed  from,  or  a  good 
reason  on  oath  must  be  given  for  the  omission  of  the  signature  of  any 
of  them.  Such  answer  must  be  verified  by  oath,  and  a  copy  served  on 
the  appellants  or  some  one  of  them. 

5.  So  far  as  the  parties  concur  in  a  statement,  no  oath  will  be 
required  to  it.  But  all  facts,  maps  or  papers,  not  agreed  upon  by  them 
and  evidenced  by  their  signatures  on  both  sides,  must  be  verified  by 
oath. 

6.  All  oaths  required  by  these  regulations  must  be  taken  before  a 
judge  of  a  court  of  record,  a  commissioner  of  deeds,  a  justice  of  the 
peace  or  a  school  commissioner. 

1,  A  copy  of  the  answer,  and  of  all  the  statements,  maps  and  papers 
intended  to  be  presented  in  support  of  it,  must  be  served  upon  the 
appellants,  or  some  one  of  them,  within  ten  days  after  service  of  a  copy  of 
the  appeal,  unless  further  time  be  given  by  the  State  Superintendent,  on 
application,  in  special  cases ;  but  no  replication  or  rejoinder  shall  be 
allowed,  except  by  permission  of  the  State  Superintendent,  and  in  refer- 
ence exclusively  to  matters  arising  upon  the  answer,  and  which  may  be 
deemed  by  such  State  Superintendent  pertinent  to  the  issue ;  in  which 
case  such  replication  and  rejoinder  shall  be  duly  verified  by  oath,  and 
copies  thereof  served  on  the  opposite  party. 

8.  Proof  of  the  service  of  copies  of  the  appeal,  answer  and  all  other 
papers  intended  to  be  used  on  the  hearing  of  such  appeal,  must,  in  all 
cases,  accompany  the  same. 


324  RULES  RESPECTING  ArPEALS. 

9.  When  any  proceeding  of  a  district  meeting  is  appealed  from,  and 
-when  the  inhabitants  of  a  district  generally  are  interested  in  the  matter 
of  the  appeal,  and  in  all  cases  where  an  inhabitant  might  be  an  appel- 
lant had  the  decision  or  proceeding  been  the  opposite  of  that  which 
■was  made  or  had,  any  one  or  more  of  such  inhabitants  may  answer  the 
appeal,  with  or  without  the  trustees. 

10.  Where  the  appeal  has  relation  to  the  alteration  or  formation  of  a 
school  district,  it  must  be  accompanied  by  a  map,  exhibiting  the  site  of 
the  school-house,  the  roads,  the  old  and  new  lines  of  districts,  the 
different  lots,  the  particular  location  and  distance  from  the  school- 
houses  of  the  persons  aggrieved,  and  their  relative  distance,  if  there 
are  two  or  more  school  houses  in  question.  Also,  a  list  of  all  the 
taxable  inhabitants  in  the  district  or  territory  to  be  affected  by  the 
question,  showing  in  separate  columns  the  valuation  of  their  property, 
taken  from  the  last  assessment  roll,  and  the  number  of  children  between 
four  and  twenty-one  belonging  to  each  person,  distinguishing  the 
districts  to  which  they  respectively  belong. 

11.  When  the  copy  of  the  appeal  is  served,  all  proceedings  upon  or 
in  continuation  of  the  act  complained  of,  or  consequent  in  any  way 
upon  such  act,  must  be  suspended  until  the  case  is  decided.  So,  where 
any  decision  concerning  the  distribution  of  public  money  to  one  or 
more  districts  is  appealed  from,  the  supervisor  must  retain  the  money 
which  is  in  dispute  until  the  appeal  is  decided.  And  where  trustees 
have  money  in  their  hands  claimed  to  belong  to  any  person,  or  any 
other  district,  after  the  copy  of  an  appeal  is  served  on  them  in  relation 
to  such  claim,  they  must  retain  such  moneys  to  abide  the  result,  and 
must  not  expend  them  so  as  to  defeat  the  object  of  the  appeal. 

12.  Whenever  a  decision  is  made  by  the  superintendent  and  com- 
municated to  the  school  commissioner  respecting  the  formation,  division 
or  alteration  of  districts,  he  must  cause  the  decision  to  be  recorded  in 
the  office  of  the  town  clerk.  All  other  decisions  communicated  to  him, 
or  to  the  trustees  of  districts,  are  to  be  kept  among  the  official  papers 
of  the  clerk  of  the  town  or  district,  and  handed  over  to  his  successors ; 
and  the  district  clerks  are  required  to  record  all  such  as  come  to  their 
hands,  in  the  district  book  kept  by  them. 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES.  325 


OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICT  LIBRARIES. 

No.  163.  The  sum  of  fifty-five  thousand  dollars,  directed  to 
be  distributed  to  the  several  school  districts  of  this  state  by 
the  fourth  section  of  chapter  two  hundred  and  thirty-seven 
of  the  Laws  of  eighteen  hundred  and  thirty-eight,  shall  con- 
tinue to  be  applied  to  the  purchase  of  books  for  a  district 
library,  until  otherwise  directed.  (Part  qf§  136,  chap  480  of 
1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  §  9,  chap.  151  of  1851,  and  %  2, 
chap.  425  o/1851.) 

The  remainder  of  the  above  section  is  printed  as  No.  103,  ante.  The 
selection  of  books  for  the  district  library  is  devolved  by  law  upon  the 
trustees ;  and  when  the  importance  of  this  most  beneficent  and  enlight- 
ened provision  for  the  intellectual  and  moral  improvement  of  the  inhabi- 
tants of  the  several  districts,  of  both  sexes  and  all  conditions,  is  duly 
estimated,  the  trust  here  confided  is  one  of  no  ordinary  responsibility. 
In  reference  to  such  selections,  but  two  prominent  sources  of  embarrass  ■ 
ment  have  been  experienced.  The  one  has  arisen  from  the  necessity 
of  excluding  from  the  libraries  all  works  having  directly  or  remotely  a 
sectarian  tendency,  and  the  other  from  that  of  recommending  the  exclu- 
sion of  novels,  romances  and  other  fictitious  creations  of  the  imagination, 
including  a  large  proportion  of  the  lighter  literature  of  the  day.  The 
propriety  of  a  peremptory  and  uncompromising  exclusion  of  those  catch- 
penny, but  revolting  publications  which  cultivate  the  taste  for  the  mar- 
vellous, the  tragic,  the  horrible  and  the  supernatural — the  lives  and 
exploits  of  pirates,  banditti  and  desperadoes  of  every  description  —  is 
too  obvious  to  every  reflecting  mind  to  require  the  slightest  argument. 

If  any  case  of  improper  selection  of  books  should  come  before  the 
superintendent,  by  appeal  from  any  inhabitant,  such  selection  would  be 
set  aside ;  and  if  it  appears  from  the  reports,  which,  according  to  regu- 
lation, must  be  made,  that  such  books  have  been  purchased,  the  school 
commissioner  will  be  bound  to  withhold  the  next  year's  library  money 
from  such  district  until  they  are  replaced  by  works  of  equal  cost  and 
better  character. 

In  regard  to  works  of  a  sectarian  character,  which  there  is  consider- 
able disposition  to  smuggle  into  district  libraries,  the  following  general 
rules,  promulgated  by  Supt.  Randall  several  years  ago,  may  be  regarded 
as  expressing  the  settled  principles  of  the  department : 


326  DISTRICT  LIBRARIES. 

"  1.  No  works  written  professedly  to  uphold  or  attack  any  sect  or 
creed  in  our  country,  claiming  to  be  a  religious  one,  shall  be  tolerated 
in  the  school  libraries. 

"  2.  Standard  works  on  other  topics  shall  not  be  excluded  because 
they  incidentally  and  indirectly  betray  the  religious  opinions  of  their 
authors. 

"  3.  Works  avowedly  on  other  topics,  which  abound  in  direct  and 
unreserved  attacks  on,  or  defence  of,  the  character  of  any  religious  sect, 
or  those  which  hold  up  any  religious  body  to  contempt  or  execration, 
by  singling  out  or  bringing  together  only  the  darker  parts  of  its  history 
or  character,  shall  be  excluded  from  the  school  libraries." 

In  the  selection  of  books  for  a  district  library,  information,  and  not 
mere  amusement,  is  to  be  regarded  as  the  primary  object.  Suitable 
provision  should,  however,  be  made  for  the  intellectual  wants  of  the 
young,  by  furnishing  them  with  books  which,  without  being  merely 
juvenile  in  their  character,  may  be  level  to  their  comprehension,  and 
sufficiently  entertaining  to  excite  and  gratify  a  taste  for  reading.  It  is 
useless  to  buy  books  which  are  not  read.  The  indifference  which  is 
manifested  in  respect  to  many  of  the  district  libraries  shows  that  in 
point  of  fact  their  volumes  are  little  sought  for.  This  could  hardly  be 
the  case,  if  the  annual  additions  were  of  a  kind  to  interest  the  young. 
If  we  can  succeed  in  making  eager  readers  of  the  youthful  generation, 
they  will  take  care  of  the  libraries  in  the  future. 

No.  164.  The  trustees  of  every  school  district  shall  be 
trustees  of  the  library  of  such  district ;  and  the  property  of 
all  books  therein,  and  of  the  case  and  other  ajjpurtenances 
thereof,  shall  be  deemed  to  be  vested  in  such  trustees,  so  as 
to  enable  them  to  maintain  any  action  in  relation  to  the 
same.  It  shall  be  their  duty  to  preserve  such  books  and 
keep  them  in  repair ;  and  the  expenses  incurred  for  that  pur- 
pose may  be  included  in  any  tax  list  to  be  made  out  by  them, 
as  trustees  of  a  district,  and  added  to  any  tax  voted  by  a  dis- 
trict meeting,  and  shall  be  collected  and  paid  over  in  the 
same  manner.  The  librarian  of  any  district  library  shall  be 
subject  to  the  directions  of  the  trustees  thereof,  in  all  matters 
relating  to  the  preservation  of  the  books  and  appurtenances 
of  the  library,  and  may  be  removed  from  office  by  them  for 
wilful  disobedience  of  such  directions  or  for  any  wilful 
neglect  of  duty.  {Sec.  137,  chap.  48  of  1847.) 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES.  327 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  provide  a  plain  and  sufficient  ease  for 
the  library,  with  a  good  look,  if  the  district  shall  have  neglected  to  do 
so.  They  are  also  to  cause  the  books  and  ease  to  be  repaired  as  soon 
as  may  be,  when  injured;  and  to  provide  sufficient  wrapping  paper  to 
cover  their  books,  and  the  necessary  writing  paper  to  enable  the  libra- 
rian to  keep  minutes  of  the  delivery  and  return  of  books.  These  are 
proper  expenses  for  the  preservation  and  repair  of  the  books,  and  are  to 
be  defrayed  by  a  tax  on  the  district,  which  is  to  be  added  by  the  trus- 
tees to  any  tax  voted  by  a  district  meeting.  It  is  not  necessary  that 
the  tax  to  defray  these  expenses  should  be  voted  by  the  inhabitants  of 
the  district ;  it  is  to  be  assessed  and  collected  in  the  same  manner  as  a 
tax  for  building  or  repairing  a  school-house,  or  to  furnish  it  with  neces- 
sary fuel  and  appendages. 

The  trustees  of  each  school  district  are  required,  at  the  time  of  making 
their  annual  reports,  to  deliver  to  the  school  commissioner  a  catalogue 
containing  the  titles  of  all  the  books  in  the  district  library  not  previously 
reported,  with  the  number  of  volumes  of  each  set  or  series,  and  the  con- 
dition of  such  books,  whether  sound,  or  injured  or  defaced.  This  cata- 
logue must  be  signed  by  them  and  by  the  librarian. 

No.  165.  Trustees  of  school  districts  shall  be  liable  to  their 
successors  for  any  neglect  or  omission  in  relation  to  the  care 
and  superintendence  of  district  libraries,  by  which  any  books 
therein  are  lost  or  injured,  to  the  full  amount  of  such  loss  or 
injury,  in  an  action  on  the  case,  to  be  brought  by  such  suc- 
cessors in  their  name  of  office.  (Sec.  138,  chap.  480  o/*1847.) 

There  is  great  reason  to  fear  that  the  duties  of  trustees,  in  respect  to 
the  preservation  of  the  libraries  in  good  condition,  are  often  criminally 
neglected.  They  ought  to  investigate  its  condition  as  soon  as  they 
come  into  office,  ascertain  who  has  the  custody  or  is  responsible  for 
every  book  upon  its  catalogue,  and  see  that  it  is  returned  in  due  time 
to  the  librarian,  or  that  the  proper  fine  for  its  detention  is  imposed  and 
collected.  If  their  predecessors  cannot  produce  or  account  for  the 
books,  they  should  be  prosecuted  for  the  value  of  such  as  may  be 
missing. 

No.  166.  A  set  of  general  regulations,  respecting  the  pre- 
servation of  school  district  libraries,  the  delivery  of  them  by 
librarians  and  trustees  to  their  successors  in  office,  the  use  of 
them  by  the  inhabitants  of  the  district,  the  number  of  volumes 


328  DISTRICT  LIBRARIES. 

to  be  taken  by  any  one  person  at  any  one  time  or  during  any 
term,  the  periods  of  their  return,  the  fines  and  penalties  that 
may  be  imposed  by  the  trustees  of  such  libraries  for  not 
returning,  for  losing  or  destroying  any  of  the  books  therein, 
or  for  soiling,  defacing  or  injuring  them,  and  the  conditions 
upon  which  any  school  district  may  apply  the  library  money 
to  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages,  may  be  framed  by  the 
State  Superintendent,  and  printed  copies  thereof  shall  be  fur- 
nished to  each  school  district  of  the  state ;  which  regulations 
shall  be  obligatory  upon  all  persons  and  officers  having  charge 
of  such  libraries,  or  using  or  possessing  any  of  the  books 
thereof.  Such  fines  may  be  recovered  in  an  action  of  debt,  in 
the  name  of  the  trustees  of  any  such  library,  of  the  person  on 
whom  they  are  imposed,  except  such  person  be  a  minor  ;  in 
which  case  they  may  be  recovered  of  the  parent  or  guardian 
of  such  minor,  unless  notice  in  writing  shall  have  been  given 
by  such  parent  or  guardian  to  the  trustees  of  such  library, 
that  they  will  not  be  responsible  for  any  books  delivered  such 
minor.  And  persons  with  whom  such  minors  reside  shall  be 
liable,  in  the  same  manner  and  to  the  same  extent,  in  cases 
where  the  parent  of  such  minor  does  not  reside  in  the  district. 
( Sec.  139,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 


REGULATIONS    OF    THE    SUPERINTENDENT    MADE    IN    PURSUANCE    OF    THE 
ABOVE    PROVISION. 

1.  The  librarian  is  required,  whenever  any  library  is  purchased  and 
taken  charge  of  by  him,  to  make  out  a  full  and  complete  catalogue  of 
all  the  books  contained  therein.  At  the  foot  of  each  catalogue  he  is  to 
sign  a  receipt  in  the  following  form  : 

I,  A.  B.,  do  hereby  acknowledge  that  the  books  specified  in  the  pre- 
ceding catalogue  have  been  delivered  to  me  by  the  trustees  of  School 
District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  ,  to  be  safely  kept  by  me  as 

librarian  of  the  said  district  for  the  use  of  the  inhabitants  thereof, 
according  to  the  regulations  prescribed  by  the  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction,  and  to  be  accounted  for  by  me,  according  to  the  said  regu- 
lations, to  the  trustees  of  the  said  district,  and  to  be  delivered  to  my 
successor  in  office.     Dated,  &c. 

A  correct  copy  of  the  catalogue  and  receipt  is  then  to  be  made,  to 
which  the  trustees  are  to  add  a  certificate  in  the  following  form  : 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES.  329 

We,  the  subscribers,  trustees  of  School  District  No.  ,  in  the  town 
of  ,  do  certify  that  the  preceding  is  a  full  and  complete  cata- 

logue of  books  in  the  library  of  the  said  district,  now  in  possession  of 
A.  B.,  the  librarian  thereof,  and  of  his  receipt  thereon.  Given  under 
our  hands,  this  day  of  ,18 

The  catalogue  having  the  librarian's  receipt  is  to  be  delivered  to 
the  trustees,  and  a  copy  having  the  certificate  of  the  trustees  is  to  be 
delivered  to  the  librarian  for  his  indemnity. 

2.  Whenever  books  are  added  to  the  library,  a  catalogue,  with  a 
similar  receipt  by  the  librarian,  is  to  be  delivered  to  the  trustees,  and  a 
copy,  with  a  certificate  of  the  trustees  that  it  is  a  copy  of  the  catalogue 
delivered  them  by  the  librarian,  is  to  be  furnished  to  him.  Every  cata- 
logue received  by  trustees  is  to  be  kept  by  them  carefully  among  the 
papers  of  the  district,  and  to  be  delivered  to  their  successors  in  office. 

3.  Whenever  a  new  librarian  shall  be  chosen,  all  the  books  are  to  be 
called  in.  For  this  purpose  the  librarian  is  to  refuse  to  deliver  out  any 
books  for  fourteen  days  preceding  the  time  so  prescribed  for  collecting 
them  together.  At  these  periods,  they  must  make  a  careful  examination 
of  the  books,  compare  them  with  the  catalogue,  and  make  written  state- 
ments, in  a  column  opposite  the  name  of  each  book,  of  its  actual  condi- 
tion, whether  lost  or  present,  and  whether  in  good  order  or  injured,  and 
if  injured,  specifying  in  general  terms  the  extent  of  such  injury.  This 
catalogue,  with  the  remarks,  is  to  be  delivered  to  the  successors  of  the 
trustees,  to  be  kept  by  them ;  a  copy  of  it  is  to  be  made  out  and  deliv- 
ered to  the  new  librarian,  with  the  library,  by  whom  a  receipt,  in  the 
form  above  prescribed,  is  to  be  given,  and  to  be  delivered  to  the  trustees. 
Another  copy,  certified  by  them  as  before  mentioned,  is  to  be  delivered 
to  the  librarian. 

4.  Trustees,  on  coming  into  office,  are  to  attend  at  the  library  for  the 
purpose  of  comparing  the  catalogue  with  the  books.  They  are  at  all 
times,  when  they  think  proper,  and  especially  on  their  coming  into 
office,  to  examine  the  books  carefully,  and  note  such  as  are  missing  or 
injured.  For  every  book  that  is  missing,  the  librarian  is  accountable  to 
the  trustees  for  the  full  value  thereof,  and  for  the  whole  series  of  which 
it  formed  a  part ;  such  value  to  be  determined  by  the  trustees.  He  is 
accountable,  also,  for  any  injury  which  a  book  may  appear  to  have  sus- 
tained by  being  soiled,  defaced,  torn  or  otherwise.  And  he  can  be 
relieved  from  such  accountability  only  by  the  trustees,  on  its  being 
satisfactorily  shown  to  them  that  some  inhabitant  of  the  district  has 

I"Code.]  42 


330 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES. 


been  charged  or  is  chargeable  for  the  book  so  missing,  or  for  the  amount 
of  the  injury  so  done  to  any  work.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  take 
prompt  and  efficient  measures  for  the  collection  of  the  amount  for  which 
any  librarian  is  accountable. 

5.  The  librarian  must  cause  to  be  pasted  in  each  book  belonging  to  the 
library  a  printed  or  written  label,  or  must  write  in  the  first  blank  leaf 
of  each  book,  specifying  that  the  book  belongs  to  the  library  of  School 
District  No.         ,  in  the  town  of  ,  naming  the  town  and  giving 

the  number  of  the  district ;  and  he  is  on  no  account  to  deliver  out  any 
book  which  has  not  such  printed  or  written  declaration  in  it.  He  is 
also  to  cause  all  the  books  to  be  covered  with  strong  wrapping  paper, 
on  the  back  of  which  is  to  be  written  the  title  of  the  book,  and  its 
number  in  large  figures.  As  new  books  are  added,  the  numbers  are  to 
be  continued,  and  they  are  in  no  case  to  be  altered  ;  so  that  if  a  book 
be  lost,  its  number  and  title  must  still  be  continued  on  the  catalogue, 
■with  a  note  that  it  is  missing. 

The  librarian  must  keep  a  blank  book,  that  may  be  made  by  stitching 
together  half  a  dozen  or  more  sheets  of  writing  paper.  Let  those  be 
ruled  across  the  width  of  the  paper,  so  as  to  leave  five  columns  of  the 
proper  size  for  the  following  entries,  to  be  written  lengthwise  of  the 
paper :  In  the  first  column,  the  date  of  the  delivery  of  any  book  to  any 
inhabitant ;  in  the  second,  the  title  of  the  book  delivered,  and  its  num- 
ber ;  in  the  third,  the  name  of  the  person  to  whom  delivered ;  in  the 
fourth,  the  date  of  its  return ;  and  in  the  fifth,  remarks  respecting  its 
condition,  in  the  following  form : 


Time  of  Delivery. 

Title  &  No.  Book. 

To  whom. 

When  Returned. 

Condition. 

1839,  June  10.        1     History  of  Va.  43. 

T.  Jones. 

20th  June.                   Good. 

As  it  will  be  impossible  for  the  librarian  to  keep  any  trace  of  the 
books  without  such  minutes,  his  own  interest  to  screen  himself  from 
responsibility,  as  well  as  his  duty  to  the  public,  will,  it  is  to  be  hoped, 
induce  him  to  be  exact  in  making  his  entries  at  the  time  any  book  is 
delivered,  and,  when  it  is  returned,  to  be  equally  exact  in  noticing  its 
condition,  and  making  the  proper  minute. 

A  fair  copy  of  the  catalogue  should  be  kept  by  the  librarian,  to  be 
exhibited  to  those  who  desire  to  select  a  book ;  and  if  there  be  room,  it 
should  be  fastened  on  the  door  of  the  case. 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES.  331 


REGULATIONS    CONCERNING    THE    USE    OF    THE    BOOKS    IN    DISTRICT    LIBRA- 
RIES,   PRESCRIBED    BY    THE    SUPERINTENDENT    OF    PUBLIC    INSTRUCTION. 

I.  The  librarian  lias  charge  of  the  books,  and  is  responsible  for  their 
preservation  and  delivery  to  his  successor. 

II.  A  copy  of  the  catalogue  required  to  be  made  out  by  art.  1  and  2 
of  the  preceding  regulations  is  to  be  kept,  by  the  librarian,  open  to  the 
inspection  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  at  all  reasonable  times.  It 
will  be  found  convenient  to  affix  a  copy  of  it  on  the  door  of  the  book- 
case containing  the  library. 

III.  Books  are  to  be  delivered  as  follows : 

1.  Only  to  inhabitants  of  the  district; 

2.  Only  one  can  be  delivered  to  an  inhabitant  at  a  time ;  and  any 
one  having  a  book  out  of  the  library  must  return  it  before  he  can 
receive  another ; 

3.  No  person  upon  whom  a  fine  has  been  imposed  by  the  trustees, 
under  these  regulations,  can  receive  a  book  while  such  fine  remains 
unpaid ; 

4.  A  person  under  age  cannot  be  permitted  to  take  out  a  book, 
unless  he  resides  with  some  responsible  inhabitant  of  the  district ;  nor 
can  he  then  receive  a  book,  if  notice  has  been  given  by  his  parent  or 
guardian,  or  the  person  with  whom  he  resides,  that  they  will  not  be 
responsible  for  books  delivered  such  minor ; 

5.  Each  individual  residing  in  the  district,  of  sufficient  age  to  read 
the  books  belonging  to  the  library,  is  to  be  regarded  as  an  inhabitant, 
and  is  entitled  to  all  the  benefits  and  privileges  conferred  by  the  regula- 
tions relative  to  district  libraries.  Minors  will  draw  in  their  own  names, 
but  on  the  responsibility  of  their  parents  or  guardians  ; 

6.  Where  there  is  a  sufficient  number  of  volumes  in  the  library  to 
accommodate  all  residents  of  the  district  who  wish  to  borrow,  the  libra- 
rian should  permit  each  member  of  a  family  to  take  books,  as  often  as 
desired,  so  long  as  the  regulations  are  punctually  and  fully  observed. 
But  where  there  are  not  books  enough  to  supply  all  the  borrowers, 
the  librarian  should  endeavor  to  accommodate  as  many  as  possible, 
by  furnishing  each  family  in  proportion  to  the  number  of  its  readers  or 
borrowers. 

IV.  Every  book  must  be  returned  to  the  library  within  twenty  days 
after  it  shall  have  been  taken  out;  but  the  same  inhabitant  may  again 
take  it,  unless  application  has  been  made  for  it  while  it  was  so  out  of 
the  library  by  any  person  entitled,  who  has  not  previously  borrowed 


332  DISTRICT  LIBRARIES. 

the  same  book,  in  -which  case  such  applicant  shall  have  a  preference  in 
the  use  of  it.  And  where  there  have  been  several  such  applicants,  the 
preference  shall  be  according  to  the  priority  in  time  of  their  appli- 
cations, to  be  determined  by  the  librarian.  Upon  application  to  the 
superintendent,  the  time  for  keeping  books  out  of  the  library  will  be 
extended  to  a  period  not  exceeding  twenty-eight  days,  where  sufficient 
reasons  for  such  extension  are  shown. 

V.  If  a  book  be  not  returned  at  the  proper  time,  the  librarian  is  to 
report  the  fact  to  the  trustees ;  and  he  must  also  exhibit  to  them  every 
book  which  has  been  returned  injured,  by  soiling,  defacing,  tearing  or 
in  any  other  way,  before  such  book  shall  again  be  loaned  out,  together 
with  the  name  of  the  inhabitant  in  whose  possession  it  was  when  so 
injured. 

VI.  The  trustees  of  school  districts  being,  by  virtue  of  their  office, 
trustees  of  the  library,  are  hereby  authorized  to  impose  the  folloAving 
fines : 

1.  For  each  day's  detention  of  a  book,  beyond  the  time  allowed  by 
these  regulations,  six  cents ;  but  not  to  be  imposed  for  more  than  ten 
days'  detention ; 

2.  For  the  destruction  or  loss  of  a  book,  a  fine  equal  to  the  full  value 
of  the  book,  or  of  the  set,  if  it  be  one  of  a  series,  with  the  addition  to 
such  value  of  ten  cents  for  each  volume.  And  on  the  payment  of  such 
fine,  the  party  fined  shall  be  entitled  to  the  residue  of  the  series.  If  he 
has  also  been  fined  for  detaining  such  book,  then  the  said  ten  cents 
shall  not  be  added  to  the  value ; 

3.  For  any  injury  which  a  book  may  sustain  after  it  shall  be  taken 
out  by  a  borrower,  and  before  its  return,  a  fine  may  be  imposed  of  six 
cents  for  every  spot  of  grease  or  oil  upon  the  cover,  or  upon  any  leaf  of 
the  volume  ;  for  writing  in  or  defacing  any  book,  not  less  than  ten  cents, 
nor  more  than  the  value  of  the  book;  for  cutting  or  tearing  the  cover 
or  the  binding,  or  any  leaf,  not  less  than  ten  cents,  nor  more  than  the 
value  of  the  book ; 

4.  If  a  leaf  be  torn  out,  or  so  defaced  or  mutilated  that  it  cannot 
be  read,  or  if  anything  be  written  in  the  volume,  or  any  other  injury 
done  to  it  which  renders  it  unfit  for  general  circulation,  the  trustees  will 
consider  it  a  destruction  of  the  book,  and  shall  impose  a  fine  accord- 
ingly, as  above  provided,  in  case  of  loss  of  a  book  ; 

5.  When  a  book  shall  have  been  detained  seven  days  beyond  the 
twenty  days  allowed  by  these  regulations,  the  librarian  shall  give  notice 
to  the  borrower  to  return  the  same  within  three  days.     If  not  returned 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES.  333 

at  tliat  time,  the  trustees  may  consider  the  book  lost  or  destroyed,  and 
may  impose  a  fine  for  its  destruction,  in  addition  to  the  fines  for  its 
detention. 

VII.  But  the  imposition  of  a  fine,  for  the  loss  or  destruction  of  a 
book,  shall  not  prevent  the  trustees  from  recovering  such  book  in  an 
action  of  replevin,  unless  such  fine  shall  have  been  paid. 

VIII.  When,  in  the  opinion  of  the  librarian,  any  fine  has  been  incur- 
red by  any  person  under  these  regulations,  he  may  refuse  to  deliver  any 
book,  to  the  party  liable  to  such  fine,  until  the  decision  of  the  trustees 
upon  such  liability  be  had. 

IX.  Previous  to  the  imposition  of  any  fine,  two  days'  written  or 
verbal  notice  is  to  be  given  by  any  trustee  or  the  librarian,  or  any  other 
person  authorized  by  either  of  them,  to  the  person  charged,  to  show 
cause  why  he  should  not  be  fined  for  the  alleged  offence  or  neglect ; 
and  if,  within  that  time,  good  cause  be  not  shown,  the  trustees  shall 
impose  the  fine  herein  prescribed.  No  other  excuse  for  an  extraordinary 
injury  to  a  book,  that  is,  for  such  an  injury  as  would  not  be  occasioned 
by  its  ordinary  use,  should  be  received,  than  the  fact  that  the  book  was 
as  much  injured  when  it  was  taken  out,  by  the  person  charged,  as  it 
was  when  he  returned  it.  As  such  loss  must  fall  on  some  one,  it  is 
more  just  that  it  should  be  borne  by  the  party  whose  duty  it  was  to 
take  care  of  the  volume  than  by  the  district.  Negligence  can  only  be 
prevented,  and  disputes  can  only  be  avoided,  by  the  adoption  of  this 
rule.  Subject  to  these  general  principles,  the  imposition  of  all  or  any 
of  these  fines  is  discretionary  with  the  trustees,  and  they  should  ordi- 
narily be  imposed  only  for  ivilful  or  culpably  negligent  injuries  to  books, 
or  where  the  district  actually  sustains  a  loss  or  serious  injury.  Reason- 
able excuses  for  the  detention  of  the  books  beyond  twenty  days  should 
in  all  cases  be  received. 

X.  It  is  the  special  duty  of  the  librarian  to  give  notice  to  the 
borrower  of  a  book,  that  shall  be  returned  injured,  to  show  cause  why 
he  should  not  be  fined.  Such  notice  may  be  given  to  the  agent  of  the 
borrower  who  returns  the  book,  and  it  should  always  be  given  at  the 
time  the  book  is  returned. 

XI.  The  librarian  is  to  inform  the  trustees  of  every  notice  given  by 
him  to  show  cause  against  the  imposition  of  a  fine;  and  they  shall 
assemble  at  the  time  and  place  appointed  by  him,  or  by  any  notice  given 
by  them,  or  any  one  of  them,  and  shall  hear  the  charge  and  defence. 
They  are  to  keep  a  book  of  minutes,  in  which  every  fine  imposed  by 
them,  and  the  cause,  shall  be  entered  and  signed  by  them,  or  the  major 


334  DISTRICT  LIBRARIES. 

part  of  them.  Such  original  minutes,  or  a  copy  certified  by  them,  or 
the  major  part  of  them,  or  by  the  clerk  of  the  district,  shall  be  conclu- 
sive evidence  of  the  fact  that  a  fine  was  imposed,  as  stated  in  such 
minutes,  according  to  these  regulations. 

XII.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  trustees  to  prosecute  promptly  for  the 
collection  of  all  fines  imposed  by  them.  Fines  collected  for  the  deten- 
tion of  books,  or  for  injuries  to  them,  are  to  be  applied  to  defray  the 
expense  of  repairing  the  books  in  the  library.  Fines  collected  for  the 
loss  or  destruction  of  any  book,  or  of  a  set  or  series  of  books,  shall  be 
applied  to  the  purchase  of  the  same  or  other  suitable  books. 

XIII.  These  regulations  being  declared  by  law  "  obligatory  upon  all 
persons  and  officers  having  charge  of  such  libraries,  or  using  or  pos 
sessing  any  of  the  books  thereof,"  it  is  expedient  that  they  should  be 
made  known  to  every  borrower  of  a  book.  And  for  that  purpose,  a 
printed  copy  is  to  be  affixed  conspicuously  on  the  case  containing  any 
library,  or  on  one  of  such  cases  if  there  be  several,  and  the  librarian  is 
to  call  the  attention  to  them  of  every  person,  on  the  first  occasion  of  his 
taking  out  a  book. 

The  offices  of  trustee  and  librarian  are  incompatible,  and  cannot  be 
held  by  the  same  person. 

No.  167.  The  legal  voters  in  any  two  or  more  adjoining 
districts  may,  in  such  cases  as  may  be  approved  by  the  town 
superintendent,  unite  their  library  moneys  and  funds,  as  they 
shall  be  received  or  collected,  and  purchase  a  joint  library  for 
the  use  of  the  inhabitants  of  such  districts,  which  shall  be 
selected  by  the  trustees  thereof,  or  by  such  persons  as  they 
shall  designate,  and  shall  be  under  the  charge  of  a  librarian, 
to  be  appointed  by  them  ;  and  the  foregoing  provisions  of  this 
act  shall  be  applicable  to  the  said  joint  libraries,  except  that 
the  property  in  them  shall  be  deemed  to  be  vested  in  all  the 
trustees,  for  the  time  being,  of  the  districts  so  united.  And 
in  case  any  such  district  shall  desire  to  divide  such  library, 
such  division  shall  be  made  by  the  trustees  of  the  two  districts 
whose  libraries  are  so  united,  and  in  case  they  cannot  agree, 
then  such  division  shall  be  made  by  the  town  superintendent. 
(Sec.  141,  chap.  480  of  1847.) 

No  provision  is  made  in  the  act  of  1856  for  devolving  the  powers  of 
the  former  town  superintendent,  under  the  above  section,  upon  the 
supervisors  or  school  commissioners.  The  section  must,  therefore,  for 
the  present,  remain  inoperative. 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES.  335 

No.  168.  Where,  by  reason  of  the  non-compliance  with  tho 
conditions  prescribed  by  law,  the  library  money  shall  be  with- 
held from  any  school  district,  the  same  may  be  distributed 
among  other  districts  complying  with  such  conditions,  or  may 
be  retained  and  paid  subsequently  to  the  district  from  which 
the  same  was  withheld,  as  shall  be  directed  by  the  State 
Superintendent,  according  to  the  circumstances  of  the  case. 
(Sec.  142,  chap.  480  o/1847.) 

The  determination  of  the  State  Superintendent  may  be  made  npon 
an  appeal  from  the  decision  of  the  school  commissioner,  excluding  the 
district  from  an  apportionment.  Upon  a  notice  from  the  commissioner, 
that  it  is  his  intention  to  exclude  the  district,  the  trustees  may,  with  his 
concurrence,  present  a  statement  of  the  facts  to  the  superintendent,  for 
his  direction.  Such  statement  must  be  verified  and  served  upon  the 
commissioner,  that  he  may  add  such  remarks  as  the  case  calls  for  before 
forwarding  it  to  the  department.  That  course  may  be  pursued  in 
regard  to  any  case  of  accidental  delinquency,  under  the  next  section. 
In  reference  to  the  form  and  contents  of  such  statement,  see  pp.  133, 
134,  ante. 

No.  169.  Whenever  an  apportionment  of  the  public  money 
shall  not  be  made  to  any  school  district,  in  consequence  of 
any  accidental  omission  to  make  any  report  required  by  law, 
or  to  comply  with  any  other  provision  of  law,  or  any  regula- 
tion, the  State  Superintendent  may  direct  an  apportionment  to 
be  made  to  such  district,  according  to  the  equitable  circum- 
stances of  the  case,  to  be  paid  out  of  the  public  money  on 
hand ;  or,  if  the  same  shall  have  been  distributed,  out  of  the 
public  money  to  be  received  in  a  succeeding  year.  (Sec.  39, 
chap.  480  of  1847.) 

No.  170.  The  State  Superintendent,  whenever  requested  by 
the  trustees  of  a  school  district,  under  the  directions  of  the  legal 
voters  of  such  district,  may  select  a  library  for  their  use,  and 
cause  the  same  to  be  delivered  to  the  clerk  of  the  county  in 
which  such  district  is  situated,  at  its  expense.  ( Sec.  143,  chap. 
480  of  1847.) 

No.  171.  Whenever  the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruc- 
tion shall  receive  from  any  author  or  publisher  two  copies  of 
any  book  published  by  him  or  them,  a  copyright  of  which 
shall  have  been  duly  entered  under  the  laws  of  the  United 


336  DISTRICT  LIBRARIES. 

States,  with  an  offer  on  the  part  of  such  publisher  to  furnish 
such  book  to  the  district  school  libraries  of  the  state,  and  the 
Packer  Collegiate  Institute  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  at  a  price 
not  exceeding  two-thirds  of  the  retail  price  of  said  book, 
which  price  shall  be  specified  in  said  offer,  it  shall  be  the 
duty  of  said  superintendent  to  place  one  of  said  copies  in  the 
state  library  at  Albany,  retaining  the  other  for  his  own  use, 
and  to  make  a  complete  list  with  the  prices  annexed,  of  such 
of  said  books  as  in  his  opinion  are  proper  and  suitable  to  be 
placed  in  the  district  school  libraries  of  the  state ;  and,  there- 
upon, on  or  before  the  first  Tuesday  of  December  in  each 
year,  the  said  superintendent  shall  cause  printed  circulars, 
addressed  to  the  trustees  of  common  schools,  and  the  trustees 
of  the  Packer  Collegiate  Institute  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  to 
be  forwarded  by  mail  or  otherwise  to  the  several  town  super- 
intendents, containing  the  titles  and  prices  of  said  books  so 
selected  and  specified,  with  such  remarks  as  the  said  superin- 
tendent may  deem  useful,  together  with  a  statement  of  the 
estimated  amount  of  library  money  to  be  apportioned  to  the 
town  and  the  said  Packer  Collegiate  Institute  for  the  current 
year,  and  a  brief  notice  that  the  books  so  specified,  or  so 
many  of  them  as  the  trustees  may  select,  not  exceeding  in 
amount  the  library  money  to  which  such  district  or  said 
Packer  Collegiate  Institute  may  be  entitled,  can  be  obtained 
in  the  manner  provided  by  this  act.  (Sec.  1,  chap.  186  of 
1856.) 

No.  172.  The  trustees,  or  a  majority  thereof,  of  any  school 
district  entitled  to  participate  in  the  library  moneys,  together 
with  the  trustees  of  the  said  Packer  Collegiate  Institute,  may 
select  from  such  list,  or  the  list  of  any  previous  year,  so  many 
of  said  books  as  they  may  wish  to  purchase,  under  the  limita- 
tion aforesaid,  and  shall  make  and  deliver  to  the  town  super- 
intendent of  schools,  as  soon  after  the  receipt  of  such  circular 
as  practicable,  a  list  of  the  books  so  selected,  with  the  prices 
annexed,  to  the  town  superintendent,  specifying  the  number 
of  the  district  or  the  institution  for  which  the  same  are 
ordered;  and  the  town  superintendent  shall  thereupon  make 
out  for  the  town  a  complete  list  of  the  books  so  selected  by 
each  of  the  several  districts,  and  the  said  Packer  Collegiate 
Institute,  specifying  the  number,  titles  and  prices  of  the  books 
selected  by  each,  under  the  limitation  aforesaid,  and  shall, 
before  the  time  in  the  next  section  mentioned,  transmit  such 
list  to  the  county  clerk  of  his  county,  who  shall  file  the  same 


DISTRICT  LIBRARIES.  337 

in  his  office ;  the  delivery  of  such  list  by  the  trustees  to  the 
town  superintendent  shall  be  taken  and  reported  by  him  as  a 
lawful  expenditure  of  the  library  money.  ( Sec.  2,  chap.  186 
of  1856.) 

No.  173.  The  several  county  clerks  shall  thereupon,  and 
on  or  before  the  last  Tuesday  in  each  year,  make  out  a  com- 
plete list  for  the  county  of  all  the  books  so  ordered,  specifying 
the  number,  title  and  prices  of  the  books  ordered  by  each  town 
and  the  said  institute,  and  forthwith  transmit  a  copy  thereof 
to  the  State  Superintendent.  (Sec.  3,  chap.  186  of  1856.) 

No.  174.  The  State  Superintendent  shall,  thereupon,  and 
on  or  before  the  first  Tuesday  of  February  in  each  year,  pro- 
cure the  books  so  ordered,  and  cause  the  same,  as  ordered,  to 
be  transmitted  to  the  county  clerks  of  the  several  counties, 
who  shall  deliver  the  same  on  demand,  taking  a  receipt  there- 
for, to  the  several  town  superintendents  and  the  trustees  of 
the  said  institute,  according  to  the  number  ordered  by  the 
respective  towns  and  the  trustees  of  said  institute,  to  be 
distributed  by  the  town  superintendent  among  the  several 
school  districts  entitled  to  the  same,  and  the  trustees  of 
said  institute ;  the  receipts  so  taken  by  the  county  clerks 
from  the  town  superintendents  shall  be  sent  by  mail  to 
the  State  Superintendent,  as  vouchers  for  the  proper  dis- 
tribution of  the  same.  The  expenses  of  transportation, 
and  other  necessary  disbursements  under  this  act,  shall  be 
certified  by  the  State  Superintendent,  and  paid  by  the  comp- 
troller out  of  the  money  annually  appropriated  for  the  trans- 
portation of  books  from  the  public  offices.  (Sec.  4,  chart.  186 
</ 1856.) 

No.  lib.  The  State  Superintendent  shall  retain  in  his  hands 
so  much  of  the  library  money  apportioned  to  each  town  and 
ward  as  may  be  necessary  to  pay  for  the  books  ordered  by 
such  town  or  ward,  or  the  said  Packer  Collegiate  Institute, 
and  shall  pay  the  same  to  the  author  or  publisher  of  said 
books,  on  the  contract  for  the  purchase  thereof,  taking 
receipts  therefor  and  filing  the  same  in  his  office.  ( Sec.  5, 
chap.  186  of  1856.) 

No.  176.  Town  superintendents  [school  commissioners, 
supervisors],  trustees,  collectors  and  clerks  of  school  districts, 
refusing  or  wilfully  neglecting  to  make  any  report,  or  to  per- 

[Code.1  43 


338  SUITS  AGAINST  DISTRICT  OFFICERS. 

form  any  other  duty  required  by  law,- or  by  regulations  or 
decisions  made  under  the  authority  of  any  statute,  shall  seve- 
rally forieit  to  their  town  or  to  their  district,  as  the  case  may 
be,  for  the  use  of  the  common  schools  therein,  the  sum  of  ten 
dollars  for  each  such  neglect  or  refusal,  which  penalty  shall 
be  sued  for  and  collected  by  the  supervisor  of  the  town,  and 
paid  over  to  the  proper  officers  to  be  distributed  for  the  bene- 
fit of  the  common  schools  in  the  town  or  district  to  which 
such  penalty  belongs;  and  when  the  share  of  school  or  library 
money  apportioned  to  any  town  or  district,  or  school,  or  any 
portions  thereof,  or  any  money  to  which  a  town  or  district 
would  have  been  entitled,  shall  be  lost  in  consequence  of  any 
wilful  neglect  of  official  duty  by  any  town  superintendent, 
[school  commissioner,  supervisor],  or  trustees  or  clerks  of 
school  districts,  the  officers  guilty  of  such  neglect  shall  forfeit 
to  the  town  or  district  the  full  amount,  with  interest,  of  the 
moneys  so  lost ;  and  they  shall  be  jointly  and  severally  liable 
for  the  payment  of  such  forfeiture.  (Sec.  145,  chap.  480  of 
1847.) 

As  all  the  duties  formerly  discharged  by  the  town  superintendents 
are  now  divided  between  the  school  commissioners  and  the  supervisors, 
the  latter  are  subject  to  the  same  penalties,  for  any  official  delinquency 
affecting  the  interest  of  a  town  or  district,  as  the  town  superintendent 
would  have  been. 


SUITS  AGAINST  DISTRICT  OFFICERS. 

No.  177.  In  any  suit  which  shall  hereafter  be  commenced 
against  town  superintendents  or  officers  of  school  districts,  for 
any  act  performed  by  virtue  of  or  under  color  of  their  offices, 
or  for  any  refusal  or  omission  to  perform  any  duty  enjoined  by 
law,  and  which  might  have  been  the  subject  of  an  appeal  to 
the  superintendent,  no  costs  shall  be  allowed  to  the  plaintiff 
in  cases  where  the  court  shall  certify  that  it  appeared  on  the 
trial  of  the  cause  that  the  defendants  acted  in  good  faith. 
But  this  provision  shall  not  extend  to  suits  for  penalties,  nor 
to  suits  or  proceedings  to  enforce  the  decisions  of  the  superin- 
tendent. (See.  146,  chap.  480  o/1847.) 

The  object  of  the  legislature  in  this  provision  was,  as  before  remarked, 
to  punish  those  persons  who  will  harass  school  officers  by  prosecution 
in  the  courts,  where  they  might  have  found  a  remedy  in  appealing  to 


SUITS  AGAINST  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  339 

the  State  Superintendent,  by  compelling  them  to  bear  their  own  costs 
whenever  it  shall  appear  to  the  court  that  the  defendants,  though  acting 
illegally,  acted  in  good  faith.  (See  3  Denio,  177,  before  quoted.)  The 
exemption  from  costs,  given  by  the  above  section  to  town  superinten- 
dents, will  doubtless  extend  to  supervisors  or  school  commissioners,  if 
prosecuted  for  their  official  action  in  respect  to  any  duty  formerly 
imposed  upon  the  town  superintendent. 

By  §  108,  title  4,  chap.  8,  part  3,  Revised  Statutes,  it  is  provided  that 
in  suits  against  trustees  of  school  districts,  and  certain  other  officers, 
"the  debt,  damages  or  costs  recovered  against  them  shall  be  collected 
in  the  same  manner  as  against  individuals,  and  the  amount  so  collected 
shall  be  allowed  to  them  in  their  official  accounts." 

This  provision  does  not  relate  to  actions  for  personal  delinquencies, 
but  was  intended  to  provide  only  for  those  cases  in  which  the  officer 
was  subjected  to  damages  and  costs,  without  his  fault,  in  consequence 
of  the  legitimate  performance  of  a  public  duty.  The  legal  presumption, 
when  a  judgment  is  recovered  against  an  officer,  is,  that  it  was  incurred 
by  his  doing  something  which  he  ought  not  to  have  done,  and  when  it 
includes  costs,  that  he  has  failed  to  make  it  appear  that,  though  mis- 
taken, he  acted  in  good  faith.  For  this  reason  his  account  is  subjected 
to  the  scrutiny  provided  by  the  following  section,  before  he  can  be 
reimbursed  or  permitted  to  retain  the  amount  from  money  in  his  hands. 

If  a  trustee's  term  of  office  expires  while  an  action  is  pending  against 
him  and  the  other  trustees  in  their  official  character,  his  successor  may 
procure  himself  to  be  substituted,  or  in  a  court  of  record — but  not  in  a 
justices'  court — the  opposite  party  may  procure  him  to  be  substituted 
as  defendant.  (2  Denio,  125.) 

No.  178.  Whenever  a  suit  shall  have  been  commenced,  or 
shall  hereafter  be  commenced,  against  the  trustees  of  a  school 
district,  in  consequence  of  acts  by  them  performed  in  pur- 
suance of  and  by  the  direction  of  such  district,  for  any  act  per- 
formed by  virtue  of  or  under  color  of  their  office,  and  such  suit 
shall  have  been  finally  determined  :  or, 

Whenever,  after  the  final  determination  of  any  suit  com- 
menced by  or  against  any  trustees  or  other  officers  of  a  school 
district,  a  majority  of  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  any  school 
district  shall  so  determine  : 

It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  to  ascertain,  in  the  man- 
ner hereinafter  described,  the  actual  amount  of  all  the  costs, 
charges  and  expenses  paid   by  such   officer,    and   to   cause 


340  SUITS  AGAINST  DISTRICT  OFFICERS. 

the  same  to  be  assessed  upon  and  collected  of  the  taxable 
inhabitants  of  said  district,  in  the  same  manner  as  other 
taxes  of  said  district  are  by  law  assessed  and  collected, 
and,  when  so  collected,  to  pay  the  same  over  to  the  officer  by 
virtue  of  this  act  entitled  to  receive  the  same  ;  but  this  pro- 
vision shall  not  extend  to  suits  for  penalties,  nor  suits  or  pro- 
ceedings to  enforce  the  decisions  of  the  superintendent.  (Sec. 
1,  chap.  172  o/1847,  as  amended  by  chap.  388  of  1849.) 

This  section  is  singularly  blind  ;  and  such  judicial  commentary  as  has 
been  spent  upon  it  has  not,  on  the  whole,  rendered  it  more  lucid.  All 
the  judges  who  have  expressed  opinions  concur  in  regarding  it  as  having 
"great  and  embarrassing  ambiguities."  (See  6  How.  Pr.  R.,  334; 
8  id.,  125,  358  ;  10  id.,  145,  468.)  By  some,  it  is  regarded  as  autho- 
rizing the  inhabitants  at  a  district  meeting  to  vote  a  tax  for  the  payment 
of  legal  expenses  incurred  by  the  trustees  in  the  defence  of  an  action 
brought  against  them  in  their  official  character,  and  permitting  the 
trustees  to  levy  such  a  tax  without  an  application  to  the  board  of  super- 
visors, under  the  succeeding  sections :  But  as  requiring  the  authority  of 
the  board  of  supervisors  to  levy  such  taxes,  if  it  did  not  appear  on  the 
face  of  the  judgment  that  the  trustees  were  sued  as  trustees,  and  not  as 
persons  who  had  lost  the  protection  of  their  official  character,  and  were 
mere  trespassers ;  and  as  also  requiring  such  authority  of  the  board  of 
supervisors  in  all  cases  where  the  action  had  been  brought  by  the 
trustees,  or  either  by  or  against  any  officer  other  than  the  trustees.  By 
others,  the  vote  of  the  supervisors  is  regarded  as  in  all  cases  indispen- 
sable ;  but  it  is  not  clear  in  what  cases  the  vote  of  a  district  meeting  is 
requisite  to  give  the  board  of  supervisors  jurisdiction,  and  in  what  cases 
that  board  may  direct  the  levying  a  tax  without  the  question  being  first 
submitted  to  a  district  meeting. 

Amid  these  doubts,  the  only  entirely  safe  course  is  to  take  all  the 
steps  pointed  out  by  the  statute  in  every  case;  that  is  to  say,  to  make 
out  the  verified  account  mentioned  in  the  succeeding  section,  and  serve 
it  with  the  notice  therein  prescribed  upon  the  trustees ;  present  it,  also, 
to  a  district  meeting,  and  procure  a  vote  directing  the  trustees  to  ascer- 
tain the  actual  amount  of  such  costs,  &c,  and  to  cause  the  same  to 
be  assessed  and  collected.  If  the  inhabitants  are  satisfied  with  the 
items,  as  presented,  the  resolution  should  declare  that  fact.  If  they  are 
not,  and  the  account  is  claimed  by  the  trustees  in  their  own  behalf,  the 
meeting  may  appoint  some  person  to  contest  it  before  the  board  of 
supervisors.     The  account,  with  the  resolution  adopted  by  the  district 


SUITS  AGAINST  DISTRICT  OFFICERS.  341 

meeting  in  respect  to  it,  together  with  evidence  of  the  service  npon  the 
trustees  of  a  copy  thereof  and  of  the  notice  prescribed,  should  then  be 
presented  to  the  board  of  supervisors.  If  that  board  then  directs  the 
account  to  be  paid,  there  is  small  room  for  doubt  that  a  tax  founded 
upon  all  these  proceedings  would  be  legal.  If  any  of  them  are  omitted, 
the  result  will  depend  upon  the  particular  judge  before  whom  the  ques- 
tion is  brought,  and  his  peculiar  method  of  endeavoring  to  make  that 
intelligible  which  the  legislature  has  left  unintelligible. 

No.  179.  Whenever  any  person  mentioned  in  the  first 
section  of  this  act  shall  have  paid  any  costs,  charges  or 
expenses,  as  mentioned  in  said  first  section,  he  shall  make 
out  an  account  of  such  charges,  costs  and  expenses,  so  paid 
by  him,  giving  the  items  thereof,  and  verify  the  same  by  his 
oath  or  affirmation  ;  he  shall  serve  a  copy  of  said  account  so 
sworn  to  upon  the  trustees  of  the  district  against  which  such 
claim  shall  be  made,  together  with  a  notice  in  writing  that 
on  a  certain  day  therein  specified  he  will  present  such  account 
to  the  board  of  supervisors  of  the  county  in  which  such  school 
district  shall  be  situated,  for  settlement  at  some  legal  meeting 
of  such  board ;  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  officer  upon 
whom  such  copy,  account  and  notice  shall  be  served  to 
attend,  at  the  time  and  place  in  such  notice  specified,  to  protect 
the  rights  and  interests  of  such  district  upon  such  settlement. 
{Sec.  2,  chap.  172  of  1847.) 

Proof  of  service  of  a  copy  of  the  account  and  of  the  notice  upon  the 
trustees  is  essential  to  "give  jurisdiction  to  the  board  of  supervisors.  It 
is  very  plain  that  when  the  trustees  are  themselves  the  claimants  they 
ought  to  show  that  they  have  given  notice  of  their  claim,  with  its  items 
verified  by  oath,  and  notice  of  the  time  it  is  to  be  presented  to  the 
supervisors,  to  a  district  meeting,  so  that  it  shall  have  had  the  opportu- 
nity either  to  admit  its  justice  or  to  make  provision  for  contesting  its 
allowance.  This  is  not  in  the  terms  of  the  statute,  but  is  in  the  equity 
of  the  case,  and  the  board  of  supervisors  might  insist  upon  it  as  a  pre- 
liminary to  paying  the  account. 

No.  180.  Upon  the  appearance  of  the  parties,  or  upon  due 
proof  of  service  of  the  notice  and  copy  of  account  mentioned 
in  the  second  section  of  this  act,  if  the  said  board  shall  be  of 
opinion  that  such  account  or  any  portion  thereof  ought  justly 
to  be  paid  to  the  claimant,  such  board  may,  by  an  order  to  be 


342  SUITS  AGAINST  DISTRICT  OFFICERS. 

made  by  a  majority  of  all  the  members  elected  to  the  same, 
and  to  be  entered  in  its  minutes,  require  such  account,  or  such 
part  thereof  as  such  board  shall  be  of  opinion  ought  justly  to 
be  paid  to  the  claimant  by  such  district,  to  be  so  paid ;  but 
no  portion  of  such  account  shall  be  so  ordered  to  be  paid 
which  shall  appear  to  the  said  board  to  have  arisen  from  the 
wilful  neglect  or  misconduct  of  the  claimant.  The  account, 
with  the  oath  of  the  party  claiming  the  same,  shall  be  prima 
facie  evidence  of  the  correctness  thereof.  The  board  may 
adjourn  the  hearing,  from  time  to  time,  as  justice  shall  seem 
to  require.  (Sec.  3,  chap.  172  of  1847.) 

The  board  of  supervisors  act  judicially  in  allowing  or  disallowing  an 
account,  and  their  decision  will  not  be  reviewed  in  any  tribunal.  (8  How. 
Pr.  R.,  358.)  Their  order  should  recite  all  the  facts  necessary  to  show 
their  jurisdiction,  such  as  the  presentation  of  an  account  in  items,  its 
verification  by  the  oath  of  the  claimant,  the  service  upon  the  trustees 
or  their  appearance  to  contest  it,  and  should  declare  that  no  portion  of 
the  account,  as  allowed  and  ordered  to  be  paid,  appeared  to  have  arisen 
from  the  wilful  neglect  or  misconduct  of  the  claimant.  It  should  con- 
clude, after  these  recitals  :  "  It  is  therefore  ordered  by  this  board,  a 
majority  of  all  the  members  elected  to  the  same  having  voted  for  this 
order,  that  the  sum  of  dollars       cents  be  paid  by  School  District 

No.  of  the  town  of  ,  in  satisfaction  of  such  account ;  that  a 

copy  of  this  order  be  forthwith  served  by  the  clerk  upon  the  trustees 
of  said  district,  to  the  end  that  within  thirty  days  after  such  service  the 
said  trustees  may,  as  required  by  law,  cause  the,  same  to  be  entered  at 
length  in  the  book  of  records  of  said  district,  and  issue  to  the  collector 
of  said  district  a  warrant  for  the  collection  of  the  amount  herein  above 
directed  to  be  paid." 

No.  181.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  oi  any  school 
district,  within  thirty  days  after  service  of  a  copy  of  such 
order  upon  them,  to  cause  the  same  to  be  entered  at  length  in 
the  book  of  records  of  said  district,  and  to  issue  to  the  collec- 
tor of  said  district  a  warrant  for  the  collection  of  the  amount 
so  directed  to  be  paid,  in  the  same  manner  and  with  the  like 
force  and  effect  as  upon  a  tax  voted  by  said  district.  ( Sec.  4, 
chap.  172  o/1847.) 

The  concluding  words,  "  as  upon  a  tax  voted,"  <fcc,  have  been  cited 
as  implying  that  the  tax  was  not,  in  point  of  fact,  voted  by  the  district. 


SCHOOLS  FOR  COLORED  CHILDREN.  343 

The  heading  of  the  tax  list  made  out  by  the  trustees  should  state  the 
purpose  for  which  the  money  is  raised,  and  the  date  of  the  order  of  the 
board  of  supervisors  authorizing  it.  The  remedy  of  the  claimant,  in 
case  the  trustees  refuse  or  neglect  to  issue  their  warrant,  is  by  applica- 
tion to  the  supreme  court  for  a  mandamus.  (See  Digest,  ante,  p.  43.) 
Their  wilful  refusal  would  be  sufficient  ground  for  an  application  for 
their  removal  from  office,  under  No.  8. 

MISCELLANEOUS  PROVISIONS. 

No.  182.  A  school  for  colored  children  may  be  established 
in  any  city  or  town  of  this  state,  with  approbation  of  the 
commissioners  or  town  superintendent  of  such  city  or  town, 
which  shall  be  under  the  charge  of  the  trustees  of  the  district 
.in  which  such  school  shall  be  kept ;  and  in  places  where  no 
school  districts  exist,  or  where  from  any  cause  it  may  be 
expedient,  such  school  may  be  placed  in  charge  of  trustees  to 
be  appointed  by  the  commissioners  or  town  superintendent 
of  common  schools  of  the  town  or  city,  and,  if  there  be  none, 
to  be  appointed  by  the  State  Superintendent.  Returns  shall 
be  made  by  the  trustees  of  such  school  to  the  [school  com- 
missioners] at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner  as  now 
provided  by  law  in  relation  to  districts ;  and  they  shall  par- 
ticularly specify  the  number  of  colored  children  over  [four] 
and  under  [twenty-one]  years  of  age,  attending  such  school 
from  different  districts,  naming  such  districts  respectively,  and 
the  number  from  each.  The  [school  commissioners]  shall 
apportion  and  pay  over  to  the  trustees  of  such  school  a  por- 
tion of  the  money  received  by  them  annually,  in  the  same 
manner  as  now  provided  by  law  in  respect  to  school  districts, 
allowing  to  such  schools  the  proper  proportion  for  each  child 
over  [four]  and  under  [twenty-one]  years  who  shall  have 
been  instructed  in  such  school  at  least  four  months  by  a  teacher 
duly  licensed,  and  shall  deduct  such  proportion  from  the 
amount  that  would  have  been  apportioned  to  the  district  to 
which  such  children  belong ;  and  in  his  report  to  the  State 
Superintendent,  the  town  superintendent  shall  specially 
designate  the  schools  for  colored  children  in  his  town  or  city. 
( Sec.  147,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  §  13,  chap. 
151  of  1851,  and  No.  67,  ante.) 

There  is  some  obscurity  in  the  provisions  of  this  section.     A  school 
in  which   children  are  separated  from  others,   on  the  ground  of  their 


344  SCHOOLS  FOR  COLORED  CHILDREN. 

complexion,  is  an  anomaly  which  it  is  very  difficult  to  reconcile  with 
our  political  or  educational  system.  The  policy  of  the  section  appears 
to  be  to  constitute  so  many  of  the  colored  children,  of  a  town  which 
establishes  a  colored  school  under  trustees  distinct  from  those  of  a  territo- 
rial district,  as  attend  a  separate  school  therein  for  four  months,  a  quasi 
district  for  the  purpose  of  the  apportionment  of  public  money.  Those 
who  attend  the  schools  in  any  territorial  district,  or  who  attend  no 
school  at  all,  are  left  to  be  enumerated  in  the  district  whose  boundaries 
contain  their  residence.  Separated  as  a  class,  they  are  deprived  of  the 
advantages  which  white  and  Indian  children  derive  from  having  their 
rate  bills  reduced  by  the  enumeration  of  those  who  do  not  attend  the 
school.  This  palpable  injustice  is  a  strong  argument  against  the  estab- 
lishment of  such  schools.  Where  they  are  established,  the  most  libe- 
ral interpretation  of  the  law  should  be  employed  in  their  favor. 

Where  a  separate  school  for  colored  children  is  established  in  a  dis- 
trict, the  trustees  must  provide  suitable  rooms  at  the  expense  of  the 
district,  and  must  treat  it  in  all  respects  as  a  part  of  the  district  school ; 
maintaining  a  qualified  teacher,  applying  the  public  money  to  his  com- 
pensation, and  paying  any  remainder  of  his  wages,  beyond  the  public 
money  applied  thereto,  by  rate  bill  upon  the  attendants  in  all  the  depart- 
ments of  the  district  school,  without  discrimination.  They  have  no 
right  to  give  to  colored  children  teachers  or  facilities  for  education  in  any 
respect  inferior  to  those  of  the  whites.  The  law  contemplates  no  such 
distinction  between  them,  and  it  is  impossible  to  render  its  provisions 
harmonious  with  any  attempt  to  institute  one.  Where,  in  such  a  branch 
district  school,  colored  children  attend  who  reside  in  other  districts,  the 
law  assigns  the  public  money  apportioned  on  their  account  to  the  dis- 
trict in  which  they  attend. 

In  the  other  case,  of  a  colored  school  established  under  the  charge 
of  trustees,  distinct  from  the  trustees  of  a  district,  that  is,  of  a  town 
colored  school,  the  only  way  to  avoid  the  injustice  above  referred  to  is 
to  regard  "  the  proper  proportion"  for  each  child  instructed  four  months, 
as  to  be  found  by  dividing  the  money  apportioned  to  the  district  of  his 
residence  equally  between  the  children  who  have  attended  at  least  four 
months.  A  proportion  must  be  between  things  of  the  same  nature  ;  if 
one  term  of  it  is  based  upon  attendance,  the  other  must  be  also. 

No.  183.  No  person  shall  wilfully  disturb,  interrupt  or  dis- 
quiet any  assemblage  of  persons  met  at  any  school  district, 
with  the  assent  of  the  trustees  of  the  school  district,  for  the 


■MISCELLANEOUS  PROVISIONS.  345 

purpose  of  receiving  instruction  in  any  of  the  branches  of 
education  usually  taught  in  the  common  schools  of  this  state, 
or  in  the  science  of  music.  (Sec.  1,  chap.  228  of  1845.) 

This  statute  was  entitled  "  An  act  to  prevent  the  disturbance  of  even- 
ing schools  in  the  several  school  district  houses  of  this  state."  The  terms 
of  the  act  are  much  broader  than  its  title,  and  extend  to  an  assemblage  of 
persons  at  any  time  of  the  day,  as  well  as  in  the  evening.  It  has  been 
repeatedly  held,  that  the  title  is  no  part  of  a  statute  (Dwarris  on 
Statutes,  653 ) ;  and  though  the  title  is  sometimes  referred  to  for  aid  in 
removing  ambiguities,  where  the  intention  of  the  legislature  cannot  be 
plainly  gathered  from  what  are  acknowledged  parts  of  the  statute,  it  is 
not  to  restrict  the  clear  meaning  of  the  latter,  and  is  regarded  in  any 
case  as  having  only  slight  influence  in  its  exposition.  ( 1  Gray  Mass. 
Bn  477.) 

No.  184.  Whoever  shall  violate  the  provisions  of  the  fore- 
going section  may  be  tried  before  any  justice  of  the  peace  of 
the  county,  or  any  mayor,  alderman,  recorder  or  other  magis- 
trate of  any  city  where  the  offence  shall  be  committed,  and, 
upon  conviction,  shall  forfeit  a  sum  not  exceeding  twenty- 
five  dollars,  for  the  use  and  benefit  of  the  school  district  in 
which  such  offence  shall  be  committed.  ( Sec.  2,  chap.  228  of 
1845.) 

No.  185.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of  any  school 
district  in  which  any  such  offence  shall  be  committed  to  pro- 
secute such  offender  before  any  officer  having  cognizance  of 
such  offence.  ( Sec".  3,  chap.  228  of  1845. ) 

No.  186.  If  any  person  convicted  of  the  offence  herein  pro- 
hibited shall  not  immediately  pay  the  penalty  incurred,  with 
the  costs  of  conviction,  or  give  security,  to  the  satisfaction  of 
the  officer  before  whom  such  conviction  shall  be  had,  for  the 
payment  of  the  said  penalty  and  costs  within  twenty  days 
thereafter,  he  shall  be  committed  by  warrant  to  the  common 
jail  of  the  county  until  the  same  be  paid,  or  for  such  term, 
not  exceeding  thirty  days,  as  shall  be  specified  in  such  war- 
rant. (Sec.  4,  chap'.  228  of  1845.) 

No.  187.  It  shall  and  may  be  lawful  for  any  person  who 
may  be  complained  of  for  a  violation  of  the  provisions  of  this 
act  to  demand  of  such  magistrate  that  he  may  be  tried  by  a 

[Code.]  44 


346  MISCELLANEOUS  PROVISIONS. 

jury.  Upon  such  demand,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  such  officer 
to  issue  a  venire  to  the  proper  officer,  commanding  him  to 
summon  the  same  number  of  jurors,  and  in  the  same  manner, 
and  the  said  court  shall  proceed  to  empannel  a  jury  for  the 
trial  of  said  cause,  in  the  same  manner  and  subject  to  all  the 
rules  and  regulations  prescribed  in  the  act  providing  for  the 
trials  by  jury  in  courts  of  special  sessions.  (Sec.  5,  chap.  228 
o/1845.) 

No.  188.  All  such  provisions  of  law  as  are  repugnant  to  or 
inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  title  are  hereby 
repealed ;  but  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be  so  construed 
as  to  impair  or  affect  any  of  the  local  provisions  respecting 
the  organization  and  management  of  schools  in  any  of  the 
incorporated  cities  or  villages  or  towns  of  this  state,  except  as 
the  same  are  affected  by  the  preceding  sections  of  this  act. 
(Sec.  150,  chap.  480  o/1847.) 

The  act  of  1851,  to  establish  free  schools  throughout  the  state,  chap. 
151,  §  8,  has  a  similar  saving  of  all  special  acts  relating  to  schools  in 
any  of  the  incorporated  cities  or  villages  of  the  state,  except  so  far  as 
they  are  inconsistent  with  the  first  (No.  149,  ante),  second,  third  and 
fourth  sections  thereof.  The  latter  sections,  which  relate  to  the  amount 
of  the  state  tax  for  schools,  and  mode  of  distributing  its  proceeds,  have 
been  superseded  by  Nos.  25  to  32,  inclusive. 

No.  189.  If  any  person,  for  gambling  purposes,  shall  keep 
or  exhibit  any  gambling  table,  establishment,  device  or  appa- 
ratus, or  if  any  person  or  persons  shall  be  guilty  of  dealing 
"faro"  or  banking  for  others  to  deal  "faro,"  or  acting  as 
"  look-out"  or  game-keeper  for  the  game  of  "  faro"  or  any 
other  banking  game,  where  money  or  property  is  dependent 
on  the  result,  or  if  any  person  shall  sell  or  vend  what  are 
commonly  known  as  or  are  called  lottery  policies,  or  any 
writing,  card,  paper  or  document  in  the  nature  of  a  bet, 
wager  or  insurance  upon  the  drawing  or  drawn  numbers  of 
any  public  or  private  lottery,  or  if  any  person  shall  endorse 
a  book  or  any  other  document  for  the  purpose  of  enabling 
others  to  sell  or  vend  lottery  policies,  he  shall  be  taken  and 
held  as  a  common  gambler,  and,  upon  conviction  thereof,  shall 
be  sentenced  to  not  less  than  ten  days'  hard  labor  in  the  peni- 
tentiary, or  not  more  than  two  years  hard  labor  in  the  state 
prison,  and  be  fined  in  any  sum  not  more  than  one  thousand 


UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW.  347 

dollars,  to  be  paid  into  the  county  treasury  where  such  con- 
viction shall  take  place,  for  the  use  of  the  common  schools 
therein,  to  be  divided  among  the  school  districts  in  that 
county,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  school  money  of  the  state 
is  divided  among  said  districts,  and  in  default  thereof  shall 
remain  imprisoned  until  such  fine  be  remitted  or  paid.  (Sec. 
2,  chap,  504  of  1851,  as  amended  by  chap.  214  o/'1855. ) 


UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW. 

No.  190.  Whenever  fifteen  persons,  entitled  to  vote  at  any 
meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  any  school  district  in  the  state, 
shall  sign  a  call  for  any  such  meeting,  to  be  held  for  the  pur- 
pose of  determining,  by  a  vote  of  such  district,  whether  an 
union  free  school  shall  be  established  therein,  in  conformity 
with  the  provisions  of  this  act,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the 
trustees  of  such  district,  within  ten  days  after  such  call  shall 
have  been  presented  to  them,  to  give  public  notice  that  a 
meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  such  district,  entitled  to  vote 
thereat,  will  be  held  for  such  purpose  as  aforesaid,  at  the 
school-house,  or  other  more  suitable  place,  in  such  district,  at 
a  day  and  hour  in  such  notice  to  be  specified,  not  more  than 
twenty  days  after  the  publication  of  such  notice.  The  quali- 
fications of  such  inhabitants,  entitled  to  vote  at  such  meeting 
as  now  by  law  expressed,  shall  be  sufficiently  set  forth  in  the 
several  notices  aforesaid.  ( Sec.  1,  chap.  433  of  1853. ) 

This  act  is  entitled  "  An  act  to  provide  for  the  establishment  of  union 
free  schools."  The  above  section  relates  to  the  measures  for  introducing 
the  system  which  it  establishes  into  a  single  district,  while  a  subsequent 
one  provides  for  the  consolidation  of  districts  for  that  purpose.  The 
form  of  the  call  by  the  inhabitants  may  be  as  follows :  "  The  under- 
signed, inhabitants  of  School  District  No.  ,  in  the  town  of  , 
entitled  to  vote  at  any  meetings  of  the  inhabitants  of  said  district, 
hereby  call  for  a  meeting,  to  be  held  for  the  purpose  of  determining  by 
a  vote  of  such  district  whether  an  union  free  school  shall  be  established 
therein,  in  conformity  to  the  provisions  of  chap.  433  of  the  Laws 
of  1853." 

This,  being  first  signed  by  at  least  fifteen  qualified  voters,  should  be 
delivered  to  the  trustees.  The  notice  to  be  given  by  the  trustees  should 
consist,  first,  of  a  copy  of  the  call  and  of  the  signatures  thereto,  after 
which  the  notice  should  proceed  as  follows : 


348  UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW. 

"  The  undersigned,  trustees  of  School  District  No.  ,  in  the  town 

of  ,  in  compliance  with  a  call  of  fifteen  (or,  more  than  fifteen) 

persons,  entitled  to  vote  at  any  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  said 
district,  of  which  the  above  is  a  copy,  hereby  give  notice  that  a 
meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  said  district,  entitled  to  vote  thereat, 
viz.,  every  male  person  of  full  age,  residing  therein,  and  entitled  to  hold 
lands  in  this  state,  who  owns  or  hires  real  property  in  such  district,  sub- 
ject to  taxation  for  school  purposes ;  every  resident  of  such  district 
authorized  to  vote  at  town  meetings  of  the  town  of  (in  a  joint 

district,  say  either  of  the  towns,  of  ,  or  ),  and  who  has  paid  any 
rate  bill  for  teachers'  wages  in  said  district  within  one  year  preceding 
the  day  of  (the  date  of  the  meeting,  not  of  the  notice), 

or  who  owns  any  personal  property  liable  to  be  taxed  for  school  pur- 
poses in  said  district  exceeding  fifty  dollars  in  value,  exclusive  of  such 
as  is  exempt  from  execution,  will  be  held  at  (the  school-house,  or  other 
more  suitable  place)  on  the  day  of  next,  at  o'clock 

in  the  noon,  for  the  purpose  of  determining  by  a  vote  of  such 

district  whether  an  union  free  school  shall  be  established  therein,  in 
conformity  to  the  provisions  of  chap.  433  of  the  Laws  of  1853.  Dated 
this         day  of        ,185     . 

(signed)         A.  B.,  }  Trustees  of  District 
C.  D.,  >  No.  in  the 

E.    F.,  )  town  of  ." 

The  day  to  be  specified  in  the  notice  must  be  not  more  than  twenty 
days  after  the  first  posting  of  the  notices.  The  statute  appears  to 
require  the  posting  of  the  original  call  of  the  inhabitants  and  notice  of 
the  trustees,  and  at  least  five  copies  thereof  in  addition  ;  and,  also,  that 
a  taxable  inhabitant,  designated  by  the  trustees,  shall  be  required  to  give 
personal  notice,  in  the  manner  provided  by  No.  82,  ante.  His  failure 
to  do  so,  in  full,  would  expose  him  to  a  penalty  of  $5,  but  would  not 
ecessarily  invalidate  the  proceedings  of  the  meeting. 

No.  191.  The  notices  aforesaid,  and  at  least  five  written 
or  printed  copies  thereof,  shall  be  severally  posted  at  various 
conspicuous  places  in,  and  may  also  be  published  in  any 
newspaper  circulating  within  such  districts.  The  trustees  of 
any  such  district  shall  authorize  and  require  any  taxable 
inhabitant  of  the  same  to  notify  every  other  inhabitant 
(qualified  to  vote  as  aforesaid)  of  such  meeting,  to  be  called 
as  aforesaid,  who  shall  give  such  notification  in  the  manner, 


UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW.  349 

and  subject  to  the  penalty,  by  law  provided  in  the  case  of  the 
formation  of  new  school  districts.  (Sec.  2,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 

No.  192.  The  reasonable  expense  of  such  notices  and  of 
their  publication  and  service  shall  be  chargeable  upon  the 
district,  in  case  an  union  free  school  is  established  therein 
under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  to  be  levied  and  collected 
upon  and  from  the  said  district  by  the  trustees,  as  in  cases  of 
taxes  now  levied  for  school  purposes;  and  if  in  the.  event 
such  union  free  school  shall  not  be  established,  then  the  said 
expense  shall  be  chargeable  upon  the  inhabitants  signing  the 
call,  jointly  and  severally,  to  be  sued  for  if  necessary  in  any 
court  having  jurisdiction  of  the  same.  (Sec.  3,  chap.  433  of 
1853.) 

No.  193.  Whenever  fifteen  persons,  entitled  as  aforesaid, 
from  each  of  two  or  more  adjoining  districts  shall  unite  in  a 
call  for  the  consolidation  of  the  same,  and  also  for  a  meeting 
of  the  inhabitants  entitled  to  vote,  as  aforesaid,  in  such 
districts  to  determine  whether  an  union  free  school  shall  be 
established  within  the  limits  of  such  districts,  pursuant  to  the 
provisions  of  this  act,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of 
such  districts,  or  a  majority  of  them,  to  give  like  public  notice 
of  such  meeting,  at  some  convenient  place  within  such  dis- 
tricts, and  as  central  as  may  be,  within  the  time  and  to  be 
published  in  the  manner  set  forth  in  the  foregoing  section,  in 
each  of  said  districts.  The  reasonable  expenses  of  said  notices 
and  their  service,  in  each  of  said  districts,  to  be  chargeable 
upon  them  in  equal  shares,  or  on  the  inhabitants  signing  the 
several  calls  therein,  as  by  the  foregoing  section  is  provided. 
(Sec.  4,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 

The  form  of  the  call  under  this  section  may  be  same  as  that  above 
given  under  No.  190,  except  that  it  should  expressly  call  "for  the  con- 
solidation of  said  districts  (the  numbers  of  which  will  be  previously 
stated)  and  for  a  meeting,"  &c.  It  must  be  signed  by  at  least  thirty,  or, 
if  it  is  proposed  to  consolidate  three  districts,  by  forty-five  persons, 
fifteen  of  whom  must  be  qualified  voters  in  each  of  the  districts.  The 
trustees  of  each  district  should  appoint  a  taxable  inhabitant  to  give  per- 
sonal notice  therein  ;  and  an  original  and  five  copies  of  the  call  and 
uotice  should  be  posted  in  each  of  the  districts,  signed  by  a  majority  of 
the  board  composed  of  the  trustees  of  all  the  districts  to  which  the 
notice  relates.     The  place  of  meeting  may  be  in  either  district.     It  is 


350  UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW. 

important  that  the  original  call  and  notices  should  be  preserved,  to  be 
filed  with  the  certified  copy  of  the  minutes  in  the  county  clerk's  office. 
If  the  proposed  consolidated  district  includes  parts  of  more  than  one 
county,  the  call  and  notices  should  be  signed  in  duplicate. 

No.  194.  Any  such  meeting,  to  be  held  as  aforesaid,  shall 
be  organized  by  the  appointment  of  a  chairman  and  secretary, 
and  may  be  adjourned  from  time  to  time  if  deemed  by  a 
majority  vote  expedient,  provided  any  such  adjournment  shall 
not  be  for  a  longer  period  than  ten  days ;  and  at  any  such 
meeting,  where  at  least  one-third  of  such  inhabitants  of  such 
district  are  present,  whenever  the  question  whether  an  union 
free  school  shall  be  established,  in  pursuance  of  the  call  for 
such  meeting,  shall  be  determined  by  a  two-third  vote  of 
those  present  and  entitled  to  vote,  as  aforesaid,  in  the  affirma- 
tive, it  shall  then  be  lawful  for  such  meeting  to  proceed  to 
the  election,  by  ballot,  of  not  less  than  three  nor  more  than 
nine  trustees,  who  shall,  by  the  order  of  such  meeting,  be 
divided  into  three  several  classes,  the  first  class  to  hold  for 
one,  the  second  for  two,  and  the  third  for  three  years ;  and 
thereupon  the  office  of  any  existing  board  of  trustees  shall 
cease.  The  said  trustees  and  their  successors  in  office  shall 
constitute  a  board  of  education  of  and  for  the  city,  village, 
district  or  districts  for  which  they  are  elected,  and  the  desig- 
nation of  the  place,  whether  as  of  such  city,  village  or  school 
district  number         ,  in  the  town  of  ,  or  of  consolidated 

school  districts  numbers         and  ,  in  the  town  of  , 

shall  be  comprised  in  the  title  of  said  board,  and  the  said 
board  shall  have  the  name  and  style  of  the  board  of  education 
of  (adding  the  designation  aforesaid).     Copies  of  the 

said  call,  minutes  of  said  meeting  or  meetings,  duly  certified  by 
the  chairman  and  secretary  thereof,  shall  be  by  them  or  either 
of  them  transmitted  and  deposited,  one  to  and  with  the  town 
clerk,  one  to  and  with  the  clerk  of  the  county  in  which  said 
districts  are  located,  and  one  to  and  with  the  State  Superin- 
tendent ;  but  when  at  any  such  meetings  the  question  as  to 
the  establishment  of  an  union  free  school  shall  not  be  decided 
in  the  affirmative,  as  aforesaid,  then  all  further  proceedings  at 
such  meeting,  except  a  motion  to  reconsider  or  adjourn,  shall 
be  dispensed  with,  and  no  such  meeting  shall  be  again  called 
within  one  year  thereafter.  (Sec.  5,  chaj).  433  eflS53.) 

It  is  important  that  it  should  appear  from  the  proceedings  of  the 
meeting  that  at  least  one-third  of  the  inhabitants  of  each  district  con- 


UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW.  351 

cerned  are  present.  For  this  purpose,  as  soon  as  the  meeting  is  organized 
by  the  election  of  a  chairman  and  secretary,  the  clerk  of  each  district 
or  the  inhabitant  required  to  give  notice  therein  should  make  a  return, 
specifying  the  names  of  the  voters  in  his  district,  which  should  be  road 
by  the  secretary,  and  the  names  of  those  present  from  each  district 
entered  upon  his  minutes. 

The  numbers  and  constitution  of  the  meeting  being  thus  ascertained, 
and  found  to  be  sufficient  to  give  jurisdiction  of  the  subject,  the  question 
should  be  brought  before  it  by  a  resolution  that  "  a  union  free  school 
be  established  within  the  limits  of  Districts  No.  ,  in  the  town  of 
,  and  No.         ,  in  the  town  of  ,  pursuant  to  the  provisions 

of  chap.  433  of  the  Laws  of  1853."  The  meeting  may  adjourn  from 
time  to  time  by  the  vote  of  a  majority  of  those  present,  although  less 
than  one-third  of  the  inhabitants,  for  not  more  than  ten  days  at  each 
time.  At  any  such  adjourned  session  the  question  may  be  taken,  on 
the  resolution  above  mentioned  ;  but  when  it  has  once  been  decided  in 
the  negative,  by  failing  to  receive  a  two-third  vote,  no  further  proceed- 
ings are  in  order  except  a  motion  to  adjourn  without  day  or  a  motion 
to  reconsider,  which  latter  motion  may  be  carried  by  a  majority  vote, 
and  the  session  may  then  be  adjourned.  On  the  reconsideration,  at  the 
adjourned  meeting,  if  the  resolution  should  be  again  lost,  all  further 
proceedings  are  to  be  suspended. 

If  the  resolution  to  establish  a  free  school  shall  pass  the  meeting,  it 
should  next  fix  upon  the  number  of  trustees  to  constitute  the  board  of 
education.  As  the  statute  has  made  no  provision  for  subsequently 
increasing  or  diminishing  the  number  of  the  board,  it  should  not  be 
fixed  without  mature  deliberation.  It  may  be  a  number  not  divisible 
by  three,  as  five  or  seven,  and  in  such  case  the  meeting  may  divide  them 
into  unequal  classes,  by  a  resolution  which  should  be  adopted  before 
proceeding  to  an  election. 

It  seems  to  be  the  intent  of  this  act  —  which  is  singularly  wanting  in 
perspicuity  —  that  an  annual  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  should  be  held 
to  elect  trustees,  as  vacancies  occur  by  the  expiration  of  their  office. 
The  meeting  should,  before  adjourning,  appoint  a  time  for  the  next 
annual  election,  except  in  the  case  provided  for  in  the  next  section,  and 
should  annually  repeat  such  appointment. 

No.  195.  Whenever  said  board  of  education  shall  be  consti- 
tuted for  any  district  or  districts  whose  limits  correspond  with 
those  of  any  incorporated  village  or  city,  the  three  classes 


352  UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW. 

shall  hold  jointly  until  the  next  charter  election  for  such 
village  or  city,  and  their  regular  term  of  service  as  by  the 
foregoing  section  shall  be  computed  from  the  several  days  of 
such  charter  elections.  And  thereafter  there  shall  be  annu- 
ally elected  in  such  villages  and  cities,  in  the  same  manner  as 
and  upon  the  same  ticket  with  the  charter  officers  thereof, 
trustees  of  the  said  union  free  schools,  to  supply  the  places  of 
those  whose  terms  by  the  classification  aforesaid  are  about  to 
expire.  The  term  of  office  of  all  trustees  elected  under  the 
provisions  of  this  act,  after  the  first  election  as  aforesaid,  shall 
be  three  years.  (Sec.  6,  chap.  433  o/*1853.) 

No.  196.  The  said  boards  of  education  are  hereby  severally 
created  bodies  corporate ;  and  each  shall,  at  their  first  meet- 
ing, and  at  times  thereafter  fixed  by  their  by-laws  as  for  their 
annual  meetings,  elect  one  of  their  number  president,  another 
the  clerk  thereof,  the  latter  of  whom  shall  also  be  the  general 
librarian  for  the  district.  In  districts  other  than  those  whose 
limits  correspond  with  those  of  any  city  or  incorporated 
village,  said  board  shall  have  power  to  appoint  one  of  the 
taxable  inhabitants  of  their  district  treasurer,  and  another 
collector  of  the  moneys  raised  and  to  be  raised  within  the 
same  for  school  purposes,  who  shall  severally  hold  such 
appointments  for  one  year  from  the  date  thereof,  and  until 
others  are  appointed  in  their  stead,  unless  sooner  removed  by 
the  board  for  cause.  Such  treasurer  and  collector  shall, 
severally,  and  within  ten  days  after  notice  of  the  appointment, 
in  writing,  duly  served  upon  them,  and  before  entering  upon 
the  duties  of  their  offices,  execute  and  deliver  to  the  said 
board  of  education  a  bond,  with  such  sufficient  penalty  and 
sureties  as  the  board  may  require,  conditioned  for  the  faithful 
discharge  of  the  duties  of  their  respective  offices.  And  in  case 
such  bond  shall  not  be  given  within  the  time  specified,  such 
offices  shall  thereby  become  vacant,  and  said  board  shall 
thereupon  make  other  appointments  to  supply  such  vacancies. 
{Sec.  7,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 

The  annual  meeting,  herein  referred  to,  is  the  annual  meeting  of  the 
hoard  of  education,  not  that  of  the  inhabitants.  In  respect  to  the 
treasurer  and  collector,  the  statute  evidently  contemplates  that  neither 
of  them  shall  be  a  member  of  the  board.  The  bond  to  be  given  by 
those  officers,  which  the  board  has  no  power  to  waive,  should  run  to 
the  board  of  education  in  its  corporate  name. 


UNION  FREE  SCIIOOL  LAW.  353 

No.  197.  The  corporate  authorities  of  any  incorporated 
village  or  city,  in  which  any  such  union  free  school  shall  be 
established,  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty, 
to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  to  be  levied  upon  all 
the  real  and  personal  property  in  said  cities  and  villages 
respectively,  as  by  law  provided  for  the  defraying  of  the 
expenses  of  their  respective  municipal  governments,  such 
sum  or  sums  as  the  board  of  education  established  therein 
shall  declare  necessary  (in  a  detailed  statement,  to  be  fur- 
nished in  writing  by  the  said  board  to  such  municipal 
authorities,  of  each  and  every  expenditure  so  declared  to  be 
necessary )  for  the  furtherance  of  any  of  the  powers  vested  in 
them  by  law ;  provided,  however,  that  the  said  corporate 
authorities  shall  have  power  to  refuse  for  one  year  any  sup- 
plies other  than  those  for  the  annual  support  of  the  teachers 
of  said  union  free  schools,  and  the  necessary  contingent 
expenses  of  the  said  schools.  And  in  case  the  said  corporate 
authorities  shall  refuse,  as  aforesaid,  they  shall  communicate 
in  writing  to  the  said  board  of  education  their  objections  to 
each  and  every  expenditure  which  they  may,  under  the  power 
as  aforesaid,  refuse  to  allow ;  and  thereupon,  the  said  board 
of  education  shall  cause  the  said  communication  to  be  pub- 
lished six  times  in  at  least  one  paper  circulating  in  said  village 
or  city.  Nothing  in  this  section  contained  shall  be  construed 
to  prohibit  any  such  municipal  government  of  any  city  or 
village  from  reconsidering  their  vote  in  regard  to  the  refusal 
of  any  such  supplies,  as  aforesaid,  within  the  year  above 
specified.  (  Sec.  8,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 

This  section,  doubtless,  is  applicable  to  those  villages  and  cities  only 
■who  correspond  in  their  limits  with  an  union  free  school  district,  as 
described  in  §  6.  The  above  section  denies  by  implication  the  power 
of  the  city  or  village  corporate  authorities  to  refuse  supplies  "  for  the 
annual  support  of  the  teachers  of  said  union  free  schools,  and  the 
necessary  contingent  expenses  of  said  schools." 

The  salaries  of  the  teachers  are  by  a  subsequent  section  to  be  fixed 
by  the  board  of  education,  and  the  general  school  law  requires  schools 
to  be  maintained  for  at  least  six  months.  The  decision  of  the  supreme 
court  of  Massachusetts  (Baichelder  v.  City  of  Salem,  4  Cushing,  602) 
is  an  authority  for  the  position  that  the  teachers  might  maintain  an 
action  against  the  village  or  city  for  the  amount  of  six  months'  wages 
at  the  rate  fixed  by  their  contract  with  the  board  of  education.     The 

[Code.]  45 


354  UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW. 

framers  of  our  statute  seem  to  have  designed  that  the  school  should  be 
maintained  during  the  whole  year ;  but  in  this  as  in  various  other  par- 
ticulars the  union  free  school  law  is  not  only  ambiguous  as  to  its  purpose, 
but  deficient  in  prescribing  the  means  by  which  it  is  to  be  effected. 

By  "  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  said  schools,"  the  framers 
of  the  act  probably  meant  all  those  expenses  which  are  necessary  to 
keep  the  ordinary  machinery  of  education  at  work,  without  making 
improvements  or  permanent  additions  to  it,  such  as  the  cost  of  warming, 
lighting,  cleaning  and  repairing  the  school  buildings,  and  renewing  the 
necessary  annual  decay  and  wear  of  their  furniture  and  apparatus.  The 
act  is  open  to  the  construction  that  it  is  within  the  discretion  of  the 
village  authorities  to  determine  what  are  necessary  contingent  expenses. 

No.  198.  The  taxable  inhabitants  of  any  districts,  as  afore- 
said, other  than  those  whose  limits  correspond  with  those  of 
any  city  or  incorporated  village,  at  any  annual  or  special 
meeting,  held  as  by  provisions  of  existing  law,  may  vote  to 
authorize  such  acts  and  raise  such  sums  of  money  as  they  shall 
deem  expedient  for  the  purpose  of  making  additions,  altera- 
tions or  improvements,  with  reference  to  site  or  structures,  in 
the  academy  or  union  free  school  buildings,  or  of  buying 
apparatus  or  fixtures,  or  for  such  other  purpose  as  they  may 
by  a  two-third  vote  approve ;  and  to  direct  the  trustees  to 
cause  the  sums  voted  to  be  levied  and  raised  by  instalments  or 
directly  by  a  tax ;  and  such  trustees  shall  make  out  a  tax  list, 
in  the  manner  by  law  provided  in  cases  of  school  district 
taxes,  and  direct  such  taxes  or  such  instalments  to  be  collected 
at  the  times  they  shall  become  due.  And  the  inhabitants  of 
such  districts  shall  have  no  power  to  rescind  the  vote  to  raise 
such  money,  or  to  reduce  the  amount  at  any  subsequent 
meeting,  unless  the  same  be  done  within  ten  days  after  the 
same  shall  have  been  first  voted.  (Sec.  9,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 

This  section  must  be  understood  as  intending  to  confer  upon  the 
inhabitants,  assembled  in  district  meeting,  powers  additional  to  those 
which  they  would  have  possessed  under  the  general  law,  if  they  had 
not  organized  a  free  school  district.  It  gives  them  the  power  to  raise 
such  sums  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  without  limitation  as  to  the 
amount  for  making  additions  and  improvements  to  sites,  buildings,  fix- 
tures and  apparatus.  These  are  mere  investments  of  money  for 
permanent  objects,  which  remain  as  a  part  of  the  capital  of  the  district, 
and  are  in  their  nature  different  from  those  expenditures  which  disappeai 


UNION  FREE  SCIIOOL  LAW.  355 

in  the  using,  and  leave  nothing  behind  capable  of  sale,  and  thereby 
of  replacing  their  original  cost.  There  is  no  reason  in  law  or  in  the 
grammatical  construction  of  the  act  for  supposing  that,  in  regard  to 
raising  money  for  these  specially  enumerated  objects,  any  other  rule  is 
to  prevail  than  that  of  the  common  law,  which  makes  a  majority  vote 
equivalent  to  a  unanimous  one. 

The  section  proceeds  to  confer  an  additional  power  to  raise  money 
"  for  such  other  purpose  as  they  may  by  a  two-third  vote  approve."  It 
imposes  no  express  limitation,  and  none  can  be  raised  by  intendment, 
other  than  that  those  purposes  must  be  in  furtherance  of  the  general 
objects  of  the  corporation.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  by  a  two-third 
vote,  the  meeting  may  authorize  the  trustees  to  levy  a  tax  to  pay  the 
teachers,  so  as  to  dispense  with  any  rate  bills.  Whether,  independent  of 
such  vote,  it  was  the  intent  of  the  law  that  rate  bills  should  be  collected 
for  tuition,  is  a  question  that  admits  of  much  argument  without  a  satis- 
factory conclusion.  It  speaks  throughout  of  free  schools.  The  question 
at  the  organization  is  "whether  an  union  free  school  shall  be  estab- 
lished?" and  to  carry  this  requires  a  two-third  vote,  which  may  be 
regarded  as  the  approval  of  the  purpose  of  all  taxes  necessary  to  make 
the  school  free.  Our  standard  lexicographer  gives,  as  a  definition  of 
this  adjective,  "  open  to  all,  without  restriction  or  expense,  as  a  free 
school."  Nevertheless,  there  are  passages  in  the  act  from  which  the 
power  of  the  board  to  levy  a  rate  bill  may  be  plausibly  inferred.  The 
question  must  wait  for  judicial  determination  or  further  legislation. 

In  the  vote  authorizing  a  tax,  the  inhabitants  may  direct  at  what  time 
and  by  what  instalments  it  shall  be  raised.  The  sums  and  periods  may 
be  equal  or  unequal  in  their  discretion. 

No.  199.  Whenever  any  school  districts  shall  have  been 
consolidated  as  aforesaid,  or  by  any  provision  of  law,  they 
shall  be  entitled  to  the  same  portion  of  the  one-third  of  the 
public  moneys,  distributed  among  the  several  school  districts, 
in  pursuance  of  an  act  entitled  "  An  act  to  establish  free 
schools  throughout  the  state,"  passed  April  12,  1851,  as  they 
would  have  been  entitled  to  if  they  had  not  been  consolidated  ; 
provided  that  they  shall  not  receive  such  portions  for  any 
longer  period  than  for  five  years  after  the  passage  of  this  act, 
iri  the  cases  of  all  districts  already  consolidated,  and  in  other 
cases  for  five  years  after  such  consolidation  shall  have  been 
effected  as  aforesaid.  (Sec.  10,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 


356  UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW. 

This  section  is  in  effect  repealed  by  the  provisions  of  No.  30  and  No. 
31,  ante,  for  a  different  mode  of  distributing  the  district  quotas.  It 
would  be  well,  nevertheless,  for  the  school  commissioners  to  give,  in  their 
reports,  the  date  of  the  organization  of  every  union  free  school  or  con- 
solidated district. 

No.  200.  The  said  boards  of  education,  by  this  act  esta- 
blished, shall  severally  have  power: 

1.  To  pass  such  by-laws  as  they  may  deem  proper  for  the 
regulation  and  exercise  of  their  lawful  business  and  powers ; 

2.  To  fill  any  vacancy  which  may  happen  in  said  board  by 
reason  of  the  death,  removal  or  refusal  to  serve  of  any  mem- 
ber or  officer  of  said  board  ;  and  the  person  so  appointed,  in 
the  place  of  any  such  member  of  the  board,  shall  hold  his 
office  until  the  next  election  of  trustees,  as  by  this  act  pro- 
vided ; 

3.  To  remove  any  member  of  their  board  for  official  miscon- 
duct. But  a  written  copy  of  all  charges  made,  of  such  mis- 
conduct, shall  be  served  upon  him  at  least  ten  days  before 
the  time  appointed  for  a  hearing  of  the  same ;  and  he  shall 
be  allowed  a  full  and  fair  opportunity  to  refute  such  charges 
before  removal ; 

4.  To  take  charge  and  possession  of  the  school-houses,  sites, 
lots,  furniture,  books,  apjiaratus,  and  all  school  property 
within  their  respective  districts  ;  and  the  title  of  the  same  shall 
be  vested  respectively  in  said  boards  of  education,  and  the 
same  shall  not  be  subject  to  taxation  for  any  purpose; 

5.  To  take  and  hold,  and  for  the  use  of  the  said  schools  or  of 
any  department  of  the  same,  any  real  estate  transferred  to  it 
by  gift,  grant,  bequest  or  devise,  or  any  gift,  h'gacy  or 
annuity,  of  whatever  kind,  given  or  bequeathed  to  the  said 
board,  and  apply  the  same,  or  the  interest  or  proceeds  thereof, 
according  to  the  instructions  of  the  donor  or  testator; 

6.  To  have,  in  all  respects,  the  superintendence,  manage- 
ment and  control  of  said  union  free  schools,  and  to  establish  in 
the  same  an  academical  department,  whenever  in  their  judg- 
ment the  same  is  warranted  by  the  demand  for  such  instruc- 
tion ;  to  receive  into  said  union  free  schools  any  pupils 
residing  out  of  said  districts,  and  to  regulate  and  establish  the 
tuition  fees  of  such  non-resident  pupils  in  the  several  depart- 
ments of  said  schools,  and  also  those  of  scholars  residing  in 
said  districts  and  attending  its  academical  department ;  to 
regulate,  in  accordance  with  the  provisions  of  this  act.  the 


UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW.  357 

transfer  of  scholars  from  the  primary  to  the  academical 
departments,  and  from  class  to  class,  as  their  degree  of  scholar- 
ship may  warrant ;  to  direct  what  text  hooks  shall  be  used 
therein  ;  to  provide  fuel,  furniture,  apparatus  and  other  neces- 
saries for  the  use  of  said  schools,  and  to  appoint  such  assistant 
librarians  as  they  may,  from  time  to  time,  deem  necessary  ; 

7.  To  contract  with,  license  and  employ  teachers  competent 
in  the  several  departments  of  instruction,  in  all  not  less  than 
one  for  every  sixty  scholars  attending  such  schools;  to  remove 
them  at  any  time  for  neglect  of  duty  or  immoral  conduct,  and 
to  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  moneys  appro- 
priated for  that  purpose  ; 

8.  And  generally  to  possess  all  the  powers  and  privileges, 
and  be  subject  to  all  the  duties  in  respect  to  the  common 
schools,  or  the  common  school  departments  in  any  union  free 
school  in  said  districts,  which  the  trustees  of  common  schools 
now  possess  or  are  subject  to,  not  inconsistent  with  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act ;  and  to  enjoy,  whenever  an  academical 
department  shall  be  by  them  established,  all  the  immunities 
and  privileges  now  enjoyed  by  the  academies  of  this  state. 
(Sec.  11,  chap.  433  o/1853.) 

Such  exposition  as  may  be  required  of  the  power  and  duties  of  the 
board  of  education,  under  this  section,  will  be  found  in  the  preceding 
pages  under  the  similar  provisions  of  the  general  law  relating  to  the 
different  school  officers.  Under  the  8th  subdivision  it  is  the  duty 
of  the  board  of  education  to  make  an  annual  report  to  the  school 
commissioner,  and  to  submit  an  annual  account  to  the  inhabitants 
assembled  in  district  meeting,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  trustees  of 
ordinary  districts.  Such  reports  should  be  adopted  at  a  meeting  of  the 
board,  and  authenticated  by  the  signature  of  its  president  and  secretary. 

No.  201.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  each  of  the  said  boards  of 
education  to  have  a  regular  meeting  at  least  once  in  each 
quarter,  and  at  such  meetings  to  appoint  one  or  more  com- 
mittees, each  to  consist  of  not  less  than  three  of  their  own 
number,  to  visit  every  school  or  department  under  the  super- 
vision of  said  board,  and  such  committees  shall  visit  all  said 
schools  at  least  twice  in  each  quarter,  and  report  at  the  next 
regular  meeting  of  the  board  on  the  condition  and  prospects 
thereof.  (Sec.  12,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 


358  UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW. 

No.  202.  It  shall  also  be  the  duty  of  said  boards,  respec- 
tively, to  have  reference  in  all  their  expenditures  and  con- 
tracts to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  appropriated, 
or  subject  to  their  order  or  drafts,  during  the  current  year, 
and  not  to  exceed  that  amount.  And  said  boards  shall  seve- 
rally apply  all  the  public  moneys  apportioned  to  the  common 
school  districts  under  their  charge  to  the  departments  below 
the  academical;  and  all  moneys  from  that  of  the  literature 
fund  or  otherwise,  appropriated  for  the  support  of  the  academi- 
cal departments,  to  the  latter  departments.  ( Sec.  13,  chap. 
433  1/1853.) 

No.  203.  All  moneys  raised  for  the  use  of  the  union  free 
schools  in  any  city  or  incorporated  village,  or  apportioned  to 
the  same  from  the  income  of  the  literature,  common  school  or 
United  States  deposit  funds,  or  otherwise,  shall  be  paid  into 
the  treasury  of  such  city  or  village,  to  the  credit  of  the  board 
of  education  therein  ;  and  the  funds  so  received  into  such 
treasury  shall  be  kept  separate  and  distinct  from  any  other 
funds  received  into  the  said  treasury.  And  the  officer  having 
the  charge  thereof,  shall  give  such  additional  security  for  the 
safe  custody  thereof  as  the  corporate  authorities  of  such  city 
or  village  shall  require.  No  money  shall  be  drawn  from  such 
funds,  credited  to  the  several  boards  of  education,  unless  in 
pursuance  of  a  resolution  or  resolutions  of  said  board,  and  on 
drafts  drawn  by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the  secre- 
tary, payable  to  the  order  of  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to 
receive  such  money,  and  stating  on  their  face  the  purpose  or 
service  for  which  such  moneys  have  been  authorized  to  be 
paid  by  the  said  board  of  education.  (Sec.  14,  chap.  433  of 
1853.) 

No.  204.  All  moneys  raised  for  the  use  of  said  union  free 
schools,  other  than  those  whose  limits  correspond  with  those 
of  any  cities  and  incorporated  villages,  or  apportioned  from 
the  income  of  the  literature  or  common  school  or  United 
States  deposit  funds,  or  otherwise,  shall  be  paid  to  the  respec- 
tive treasurers  of  the  said  several  boards  of  education  entitled 
to  receive  the  same,  and  be  by  them  applied  to  the  uses  of 
said  several  boards,  who  shall  annually  render  their  accounts 
of  all  moneys  received  and  expended  by  them  for  the  use  of 
said  schools,  with  every  voucher  for  the  same,  and  certified 
copies  of  all  orders  of  the  said  boards  touching  the  same,  to 


UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW.  359 

the  [school  commissioner]  of  the  town  in  which  said  districts 
are  severally  located.  (Sec.  15,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 

No.  205.  Every  academical  department,  so  as  to  be  estab- 
lished as  aforesaid,  shall  be  under  the  visitation  of  the  regents 
of  the  university,  and  shall  be  subject  in  its  course  of  educa- 
tion and  matters  pertaining  thereto  (but  not  in  reference  to 
the  buildings  or  erections  in  which  the  same  is  held,  unless 
in  cases  where  the  buildings  aforesaid  are  separate  from  those 
of  the  common  school  department)  to  all  the  regulations 
made  in  regard  to  academies  by  the  said  regents.  In  such 
departments,  the  qualifications  for  the  entrance  of  any  pupil 
shall  be  the  same  as  those  established  by  the  said  regents  for 
admission  into  any  academy  of  the  state  under  their  super- 
vision. {Sec  16,  chap.  433  of  1853.) 

No.  206.  Whenever  an  union  school  shall  be  established 
under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  there  shall  exist  within 
its  district  an  academy,  the  trustees  thereof  may,  by  an 
unanimous  vote,  to  be  attested  by  their  signatures  and  tiled 
in  the  office  of  the  clerk  of  the  county,  declare  their  offices 
vacant ;  and  thereafter  the  trustees  of  such  union  school  shall 
become  the  trustees  of  the  said  academy?  and  be  charged  with 
all  the  duties  of  the  former  trustees,  and  the  said  academy 
shall  be  regarded  as  the  academical  department  of  such  union 
school.  ( Sec.  17,  chap.  433  of  1853. ) 

Although  the  effect  of  this  provision  probably  is  to  transfer  to  the 
trustees  of  the  free  school  district  all  corporate  property  vested  in  the 
trustees  of  the  academy,  it  will  be  prudent  for  the  latter,  in  pursuance 
of  a  resolution  to  that  effect  adopted  at  a  regular  meeting,  to  execute  a 
deed  of  all  their  corporate  property  to  the  board  of  education. 

No.  207.  All  acts  or  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  with  the 
provisions  aforesaid  are  hereby  repealed ;  and  the  provisions 
of  this  act,  in  reference  to  the  establishment  of  academical 
departments,  shall  be  as  applicable  to  those  school  districts 
or  villages  where  free  schools  have  been  established,  by 
special  charter,  as  if  no  such  charter  had  been  granted  ;  but 
nothing  in  this  act  shall  be  construed  to  impair  the  charters 
or  alter  or  abridge  the  rights  or  privileges  of  any  free  schools 
now  by  law  established  in  any  city  of  the  state.  {Sec.  18, 
chap.  433  o/1853.) 


360        REAPPORTIONMENT  OF  MONEY. 


REAPPORTIONMENT  OF  UNEXPENDED  MONEY. 

No.  208.  All  moneys  apportioned  by  the  [school  commis- 
sioners] to  the  trustees  of  a  district,  part  of  a  district  or  sepa- 
rate neighborhood,  which  shall  have  remained  in  the  hands 
of  the  [supervisor]  for  one  year  after  such  apportionment,  by 
reason  of  the  trustees  neglecting  or  refusing  to  receive  the 
same,  shall  be  added  to  the  moneys  next  thereafter  to  be 
apportioned  by  the  [school  commissioners],  and  shall  be 
apportioned  and  paid  therewith  in  the  same  manner.  (  Sec. 
17,  chap.  480  of  1847,  modified  in  conformity  to  Nos.  32  and  50. ) 

The  trustees,  strictly  speaking,  receive  nothing  but  library  money. 
The  payment  of  their  orders,  drawn  in  favor  of  teachers,  must  be 
regarded  as  equivalent  to  its  reception  by  the  trustees,  in  order  to  give 
any  force  to  this  section ;  and  their  neglect  to  exhaust  the  money,  by 
such  orders,  as  abandoning  it  for  reapportionment  among  all  the  dis- 
tricts of  the  county.  They  are  to  draw  such  orders  in  payment  for 
teachers'  wages  earned  during  the  year  in  which  the  money  was  appor- 
tioned, and  are  required  to  report  before  the  fifteenth  day  of  January 
that  all  the  money  received  has  been  so  applied.  A  year  "  after  the 
previous  apportionment"  does  not  expire,  hdwever,  before  the  first 
Tuesday  of  April,  and  until  it  has  expired  the  supervisor  is  at  liberty  to 
pay  orders  for  teachers'  wages  earned  previous  to  the  first  of  January. 
It  is  his  duty  to  report  to  the  school  commissioner  in  charge  of  the 
district  to  which  his  town  belongs  the  amount  of  all  sums  then  remain- 
ing unexpended  in  his  hands,  that  it  may  be  apportioned  to  the  several 
districts  of  the  county,  and  charged  to  such  town  as  a  partial  payment 
of  the  sum  to  which  it  is  entitled  on  the  new  apportionment.  A  com- 
parison of  the  sum  reported,  as  received  by  the  trustees,  with  the  amount 
apportioned  to  the  district  the  previous  year,  will  furnish  the  commis- 
sioners with  information  which  ought  to  correspond  with  the  report  of 
the  supervisor.  If  the  trustees  reports  are  correct,  the  commissioners 
will  learn  from  them  how  much  money  is  to  be  reapportioned,  without 
waiting  for  the  report  of  the  supervisor. 


LOCAL  LAWS  AND  REGULATIONS 

RESPECTING 

COMMON  SCHOOLS. 


ALBANY. 
[Laws  of  1844,  chap.  128.] 


Section  1.  The  mayor  and  recorder  of  the  city  of  Albany,  and  the  regents  of 
the  university  residing  in  said  city,  shall,  without  delay,  appoint  nine  persons, 
residents  of  the  city  of  Albany,  to  be  denominated  a  board  of  commissioners  of 
the  district  schools  of  the  city  of  Albany,  who  shall  be  divided  by  lot  into  three 
classes,  to  be  numbered  one,  two  and  three ;  the  term  of  office  of  the  first  class 
shall  be  one  year,  from  the  first  day  of  June  next;  of  the  second,  two;  and  of 
the  third,  three  years  from  that  day ;  and  three  commissioners  shall  thereafter 
annually  be  appointed,  by  the  said  mayor  and  recorder  of  the  city  of  Albany 
and  the  regents  of  the  university  residing  in  said  city,  in  place  of  those  whose 
terms  of  office  shall  expire,  who  shall  hold  their  office  for  three  years,  and  until 
their  successors  be  duly  appointed.  In  case  of  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  either 
of  the  commissioners,  during  the  period  for  which  he  or  they  shall  have  been 
respectively  appointed,  the  said  mayor  and  recorder  of  the  city  of  Albany  and 
the  regents  of  the  university  residing  in  the  said  city  shall  fill  such  vacancy,  and 
the  person  or  persons  appointed  to  fill  such  vacancy  shall  hold  the  office  only  for 
the  unexpired  term  so  becoming  vacant. 

§  2.  Any  member  of  said  board  of  commissioners  may  be  removed,  for  cause, 
from  office,  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  the  persons  authorized  by  the  preceding 
section  to  appoint  such  commissioners ;  and  any  vacancy  so  made  shall  be  filled 
in  the  manner  already  provided. 

§  3.  The  board  of  commissioners  shall  have  power  to  appoint  one  of  their 
number  president  of  said  board,  who  shall  have  the  powers  usually  incident  to 
such  office;  and  said  board  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to 
appoint  a  secretary  to  said  board,  who  shall  perform  such  duties  as  the  said 
board  from  time  to  time  may  direct,  and  who  shall  receive  therefor  such  com- 
pensation, not  exceeding  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  annually,  as  the  said 
board  shall  provide,  out  of  any  moneys  remaining  unexpended  in  the  hands  of 
said  board. 

§  4.  The  board  of  commissioners  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty, 
to  contract  with  and  employ  the  teachers  of  the  district  schools  of  said  city ;  to 
remove  any  teacher  upon  manifest  neglect  of  duty,  or  upon  violation  of  his  or 
her  contract ;  to  appoint  a  collector  for  the  said  district  schools ;  to  make  out 
rate  bills  and  exempt  indigent  children  therefrom ;  to  select  and  introduce  uniform 

[Code.]  46 


362  ALBANY. 

class  books  into  said  schools;  to  supply  indigent  pupils  with  said  class  books,  by 
using  and  appropriating  for  that  purpose  a  portion  of  the  library  money,  not 
exceeding  three  hundred  dollars  in  any  one  year;  to  appropriate  and  use,  for  the 
purpose  of  keeping  in  repair  the  several  libraries  of  said  district  schools,  for 
increasing  the  same,  and. for  purchasing  maps  and  apparatus  for  said  schools,  a 
farther  portion  of  said  library  money,  not  exceeding  three  hundred  dollars  anna- 
ally;  to  provide  for  the  instruction  of  the  pupils  of  said  district  schools  in  vocal 
music,  by  appropriating  a  farther  portion  of  said  library  money,  not  exceeding 
four  hundred  dollars  annually;  to  secure,  with  whatever  may  remain  unexpended 
of  said  library  money,  the  education  of  such  number  of  indigent  pupils  from 
said  district  schools,  in  either  of  the  academies  or  in  any  normal  school  of  said 
city,  by  paying  for  their  tuition  therein,  as  the  common  council  of  said  city  may 
sanction  —  but  all  children  so  educated  shall  have  been  members  of  said  district 
schools  for  at  least  two  years,  and  neither  of  such  academies  shall  receive  from 
the  distribution  of  the  literature  fund  any  sum  for  or  on  account  of  such  pupils, 
and  such  academies  shall  in  their  annual  report  to  the  regents  of  the  university 
state  the  number  of  such  pupils  taught  therein,  and  no  portion  of  said  unexpended 
money  shall  be  so  appropriated  until  the  ordinary  expenses  of  said  district  schools 
for  libraries  and  tuition  are  first  satisfied;  to  visit  the  district  school  as  often  as 
once  a  quarter ;  to  hold  a  meeting  of  the  board  once  a  month,  and  at  the  quarterly 
meetings  of  said  board  to  require  the  presence  and  reports  of  the  several  principal 
teachers  of  said  schools ;  to  make  a  semi-annual  report  of  all  the  acts  of  said 
board  to  the  common  council,  and  to  make  and  publish  an  annual  report  in  two  of 
the  daily  papers  of  said  city ;  and  generally  to  possess  the  powers,  discharge  the 
duties  and  be  subject  to  all  of  the  obligations  of  the  several  trustees  and  other 
school  officers  of  the  said  city  of  Albany,  as  granted  and  imposed  by  the  several 
acts  now  in  force  in  relation  to  said  district  schools  of  said  city. 

§  5.  The  board  of  commissioners  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty, 
to  make  such  by-laws  and  regulations  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  prosperity, 
good  order  and  sound  discipline  of  said  district  schools;  for  the  security  and 
preservation  of  the  schoobhouses  and  other  property  belonging  to  said  districts; 
and  generally  to  carry  into  elfect  the  provisions  of  the  several  school  acts  of  said 
city ;  and  when  said  bydaws  and  regulations  are  sanctioned  by  the  persons  autho- 
rized by  this  act  to  appoint  said  commissioners,  they  shall  take  effect,  and  not 
before. 

8  6.**  *         *  ********* 

Nothing  in  this  act  shall  be  so  construed  as  to  authorize  said  board  to  incur  any 
obligation  that  shall  increase  the  taxes  of  said  city. 

[Laws  of  1855,  chap.  516.] 

Section  1.  The  board  of  commissioners  of  the  district  schools  of  the  city  of 
Albany  shall  hereafter  be  known  as  the  board  of  education  of  the  city  of  Albany. 

§  2.  On  or  before  the  first  day  of  June  next,  the  common  council  of  the  city 
of  Albany  shall  elect  by  ballot  three  persons,  residents  of  the  city  of  Albany,  in 
place  of  those  members  of  said  board  of  education  whose  terms  of  office  shall 
then  expire,  who  shall  hold  their  offices  for  three  years  from  the  first  day  of  June, 
1855,  and  until  their  successors  shall  be  duly  appointed;  and  three  persons,  resi- 
dents as  aforesaid,  shall  thereafter,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  June  in  each 
year,  be  elected  by  the  said  common  council,  in  like  manner,  in  place  of  those 
members  of  said  board  of  education  whose  terms  of  office  shall  then  expire,  who 
shall  hold  their  offices  for  three  years,  and  until  their  successors  shall  be  duly 
elected.  At  such  elections,  no  member  of  said  common  council  shall  vote  for 
more  than  two  persons,  and  the  three  persons  receiving  the  highest  number  of 
votes  shall  be  declared  elected.  In  case  of  any  vacancy  in  said  board,  the  com- 
mon council  shall  fill  the  same,  and  the  persons  so  appointed  shall  hold  the  office 
only  for  the  residue  of  the  term. 

§  3.  Any  member  of  said  board  of  education  may  be  removed  for  cause,  by  a 
vote  of  two-thirds  of  all  the  members  elected  to  said  common  council,  and  any 
vacancy  so  made  shall  be  filled  in  the  manner  already  provided. 


AUBURN.  303 

§  4.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  appoint  one  of  their  number  president, 
who  shall  have  the  powers  usually  incident  to  such  office,  and  a  secretary,  who 
shall  perform  such  duties  as  the  said  board  may  direct,  and  who  shall  receive 
therefor  such  compensation,  not  exceeding  two  hundred  dollars,  as  the  said  hoard 
shall  provide. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  possess  all  the  powers  now  conferred 
on  the  board  of  commissioners  of  the  district,  schools  of  the  city  of  Albany,  and 
shall  perform  such  other  duties  in  regard  of  education  in  the  city  of  Albany  as 
the  said  common  council  may,  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  all  the  members  elected 
to  the  said  common  council,  from  time  to  time  direct. 

§  G.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty, 
to  make  such  by-laws  and  regulations  as  may  he  necessary  for  the  prosperity, 
good  order  and  sound  discipline  of  said  schools,  for  the  security  and  preservation 
of  the  school-houses  and  other  property  belonging  to  said  schools,  and  generally 
lo  carry  into  elfeet  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  said  by-laws  shall  take  eiieet 
when  approved  by  the  common  council. 

§  7.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  report  to  the  said  common  council 
annually,  and  oftener  if  required,  the  general  condition  of  the  schools  under  their 
charge,  and  shall,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  November  in  each  year,  certify  to 
the  common  council,  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  their  whole  number,  the  amount 
of  money  which  will  be  required  for  the  ensuing  year  for  school  purposes,  exclu- 
sive of  the  public  money,  specifying  the  several  purposes  for  which  it  will  be 
required  and  the  amount  of  each  item.  And  the  board  of  supervisors  of  the 
county  of  Albany  shall,  upon  the  requisition  of  the  common  council,  passed  by 
a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  all  the  members  elected  to  said  common  council,  levy  and 
collect  the  said  sum  upon  the  taxable  property  of  the  city  of  Albany,  in  the 
same  manner  as  other  taxes  are  levied  and  collected. 

§  8.  All  school  moneys  whatever,  whether  received  from  the  state  or  otherwise, 
shall  be  deposited  with  the  chamberlain  of  said  city,  who  shall  keep  a  separate 
account  thereof,  and  the  same  shall  be  drawn  only  by  order  of  the  said  board  of 
education,  which  shall  specify  the  object  to  which  the  sum  stated  in  said  order  is 
to  be  applied,  and  shall  he  signed  by  the  president  and  secretary  of  said  board. 

§  9.  All  acts  relating  to  the  district  schools  of  the  city  Of  Albany  inconsistent 
with  this  act  are  hereby  repealed. 


AUBURN. 
[  Laws  of  1850,  chap.  349.  ] 

Section  1.  Title  eight  of  an  act  to  incorporate  the  city  of  Auburn,  passed 
March  21,  1848,  is  hereby  repealed. 

§  2.  The  offices  of  the  several  trustees,  clerks,  collectors  and  librarians  of 
school  districts  in  the  city  of  Auburn  shall  cease  on  the  third  Tuesday  in  April, 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty,  in  like  manner  as  if  the  same  had  expired 
by  lapse  of  time.  The  inhabitants  of  said  city,  qualified  to  vote  at  school  district 
meetings,  shall  assemble  in  their  respective  school  districts  on  the  day  last  men- 
tioned, at  the  school-house  in  such  district,  and  choose  one  trustee  and  a  clerk 
of  the  district,  who  shall  hold  their  respective  offices  until  the  next  annual 
district  meeting  in  the  district  for  which  they  shall  be  respectively  chosen,  and 
until  their  successors  shall  have  been  severally  chosen.  Such  annual  district 
meeting  shall  hereafter  be  h olden  in  the  several  districts  in  said  city,  on  the 
second  Monday  in  March,  in  each  year;  and  from  and  after  the  passage  of  this 
act  only  one  trustee  shall  be  chosen  annually  in  any  school  district  in  said  city. 

§  3.  The  trustee  elected  in  any  district  in  said  city  shall  have  the  power,  and 
it  shall  be  his  duty,  to  call  special  meetings  of  the  inhabitants  of  such  districts, 
liable  to  pay  taxes",  whenever  he  shall  deem  it  necessary  or  proper;  to  give  notice 
of  special,  annual  and  adjourned  meetings,  in  the  manner  prescribed  in  this  act, 
if  there  bo  no  clerk  of  the  district,  or  he  be  absent  or  incapable  of  acting,  or  shall 


364  AUBURN 

refuse  or  neglect  to  give  such  notice ;  to  visit  the  schools  kept  in  the  district  as 
often  as  once  in  each  quarter,  and  to  report  the  condition  of  the  same,  with  such 
suggestions  for  the  improvement  thereof  as  he  may  deem  proper,  to  the  board  of 
education  hereinafter  named,  and  to  perform  such  other  duties  as  may  be  from 
time  to  time  imposed  upon  him  by  the  said  board  of  education. 

§  4.  It  shall  be  sufficient  notice  of  an  annual,  special,  adjourned  or  first  district 
meeting  to  affix  such  notice  on  the  outer  door  of  the  district  school-house,  if 
there  be  any,  and  to  post  a  copy  of  the  same  in  three  other  public  places  in  such 
district;  the  affixing  and  posting  of  such  notice  to  be  done  at  least  ten  days 
before  such  meeting,  and  no  other  notice  of  such  meeting  need  be  given. 

§  5.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  clerk  of  each  school  district  to  record  the 
proceedings  of  his  district  in  a  book  to  be  provided  for  that  purpose  by  the  said 
board  of  education;  to  give  notice,  in  the  manner  provided  in  the  last  preceding 
section,  of  the  time  and  place  of  every  annual  district  meeting  or  special  district 
meetings,  when  ordered  by  the  trustees  of  the  district,  and  of  any  adjourned 
district  meeting,  when  the  same  shall  be  adjourned  for  a  longer  period  than  one 
month ;  to  keep  and  preserve  all  records,  books  and  papers  belonging  to  his  office, 
and  to  deliver  the  same  to  his  successor  in  office. 

§  6.  Any  vacancy  in  the  office  of  district  clerk  may  be  supplied  by  the  trustee 
of  the  district  in  which  such  vacancy  shall  happen;  but  the  person  appointed  to 
supply  such  vacancy  shall  hold  the  office  only  for  the  unexpired  term. 

§  7.  The  term  of  office  of  the  superintendent  of  common  schools  in  said  city 
shall  cease  on  the  third  Tuesday  of  April,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty, 
in  the  same  manner  as  if  the  same  had  expired  by  lapse  of  time.  The  common 
council  of  said  city,  at  the  last  regular  meeting  thereof  next  preceding  the  third 
Tuesday  of  April  next,  shall  appoint  by  ballot  a  superintendent  of  common 
schools,  who  shall  hold  his  office  until  the  second  Monday  of  March,  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty-two.  The  common  council  of  said  city,  at  the  annual 
meeting  thereof,  held  on  the  second  Monday  of  March,  1852,  and  as  often 
thereafter  as  the  term  of  office  of  such  superintendent  of  common  schools  shall 
expire,  shall  appoint  a  superintendent  of  common  schools  for  said  city,  who  shall 
hold  his  office  for  two  years,  and  until  a  successor  shall  be  appointed.  The 
superintendent  of  common  schools,  so  appointed,  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and 
be  subject  to  all  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  superintendents  of  common 
schools  in  towns,  so  far  as-  the  same  are  applicable,  except  as  otherwise  provided 
in  this  act;  in  case  of  a  vacancy  in  such  office,  the  common  council  of  said  city 
shall  supply  the  same  by  appointment  for  the  unexpired  term. 

§  8.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall,  at  the  last  regular  meeting  thereof 
next  preceding  the  third  Tuesday  of  April,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty, 
appoint  one  school  commissioner  in  each  of  the  wards  of  said  city,  who  shall  be 
residents  of  the  wards  for  which  they  are  respectively  appointed ;  immediately 
upon  the  appointment  of  such  school  commissioners,  the  city  clerk  shall,  in  the 
presence  of  the  common  council,  divide  them  by  lot  into  four  classes,  to  be  num- 
bered one,  two,  three,  four.  The  term  of  office  of  the  first  class  shall  expire  on 
the  first  Monday  succeeding  the  first  Tuesday  in  April,  1851 ;  the  second  class  in 
one  year  thereafter ;  the  third  in  two  years,  and  the  fourth  in  three  years,  and 
one  commissioner  only  shall  thereafter  be  annually  appointed,  who  shall  be 
appointed  at  the  annual  meeting  of  the  common  council,  held  on  Monday  next 
succeeding  the  annual  election,  and  who  shall  be  a  resident  of  the  same  ward 
with  the  school  commissioner  whose  term  of  office  shall  then  expire,  who  shall 
hold  his  office  for  four  years,  and  until  a  successor  shall  be  duly  appointed.  In 
case  of  a  vacancy  in  the  office  of  either  of  the  commissioners,  the  common  council 
shall  appoint  a  successor,  who  shall  he  a  resident  of  the  ward  in  which  such 
vacancy  shall  occur,  for  the  unexpired  term. 

§  9.  The  trustees  of  the  several  school  districts  so  elected,  and  the  school  com- 
missioners so  appointed,  together  with  the  mayor  and  superintendent  of  schools 
of  said  city,  shall  constitute  and  are  hereby  denominated  the  board  of  education 
for  the  city  of  Auburn.  They  shall  meet  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  each  and  every 
month,  and  as  much  oftener  as  they  shall  from  time  to  time  appoint.    A  majority 


AUBURN.  3G5 

of  the  said  board  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business.  The 
mayor  shall  be  president  of  such  board,  and  shall  have  power  to  call  special 
meetings  thereof  in  the  manner  provided  by  law  for  calling  special  meetings  of 
the  common  council.  In  the  absence  of  the  mayor,  the  said  board  sball  appoint 
some  other  member  to  preside  at  such  meetings  and  perform  the  duties  of  the 
president.  The  superintendent  of  common  schools  shall  be  the  clerk  of  such 
board;  he  shall  attend  the  meetings  and  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of  the 
said  board ;  he  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  required  to  perform  all  the 
duties,  in  reference  to  the  schools  of  said  city,  of  town  superintendents  of  common 
schools,  except  as  otherwise  in  this  act  provided,  and  shall  perform  such  other 
duties  as  the  said  board  shall  from  time  to  time  prescribe. 

§  10.  The  board  of  education  shall  fix  the  compensation  of  the  superintendent 
of  common  schools,  for  his  services  as  clerk  of  such  board,  not  exceeding  one 
hundred  dollars  per  year;  and  for  such  other  services  as  he  may  perform,  other- 
wise than  as  such  clerk,  he  shall  be  entitled  to  the  same  compensation  as  provided 
by  law  for  town  superintendents  of  schools  for  similar  services,  and  his  account 
therefor  shall  be  audited  by  such  board,  and  paid  by  the  city  treasurer  out  of  the 
moneys  in  this  act  specified  as  the  common  school  fund,  and  not  otherwise. 

§11.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  possess  all  the  powers  conferred  by 
law  upon  town  superintendents  of  common  schools,  as  to  the  formation  and  alter- 
ation of  school  districts  within  said  city,  except  that  in  arranging  such  districts 
no  territory  without  the  limits  of  said  city  shall  be  included,  nor  shall  any  terri- 
tory within  said  city  belong  to  or  be  taxed  in  any  school  district  of  any  adjoining 
town ;  and  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all  the  duties  and 
responsibilities  of  trustees  of  common  schools  in  towns,  as  to  the  several  common 
or  district  schools  within  said  city,  so  far  as  the  same  are  applicable,  except  as 
otherwise  in  this  act  provided ;  and  shall  have  the  custody  of  all  the  property, 
real  and  personal,  belonging  to  or  owned  by  the  several  school  districts,  and  shall 
pay  the  compensation  of  the  teachers  of  the  said  schools,  and  all  other  necessary 
and  contingent  expenses  incurred  in  the  support  thereof;  and  shall  appoint 
librarians  to  take  charge  of  the  several  district  libraries,  who  shall  be  subject  to 
the  control  and  hold  their  offices  during  the  pleasure  of  such  board  ;  and  shall 
have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to  pass  such  by-laws  and  ordinances  for 
the  regulation,  government,  control  and  management  of  the  common  schools  in 
said  city,  and  of  the  teachers  and  pupils  of  such  schools,  and  of  the  officers  of 
the  several  school  districts  in  said  city,  and  for  the  safe  keeping,  disposition  and 
management  of  the  libraries,  maps  and  apparatus  appertaining  to  such  schools, 
and  to  regulate  the  text  books  used  in  such  schools,  as  they  shall  deem  expedient; 
and  said  board  may  prescribe  a  penalty  for  a  violation  of  any  ordinance  or  by-law, 
authorized  by  this  act,  not  exceeding  ten  dollars,  and  any  such  penalty  may  be 
sued  for  and  recovered,  with  costs,  in  the  name  of  the  mayor  and  common  council 
of  the  city  of  Auburn ;  and  the  said  board  may  subject  the  parent  or  guardian 
of  any  minor,  and  the  master  or  mistress  of  any  apprentice  or  servant,  to  any 
such  penalty  for  a  violation  of  any  such  ordinance  or  by-law  by  any  such  minor, 
apprentice  or  servant. 

§  12.  All  penalties  collected  by  virtue  of  this  act  shall  be  paid  to  the  city 
treasurer,  and  by  him  deposited  to  the  credit  of  the  common  school  fund. 

§  13.  The  clerk  of  the  board  of  education  shall  keep  a  record  of  all  by-laws 
and  ordinances  which  shall  be  passed  by  said  board,  and  the  same  shall  be  pub- 
lished and  take  effect,  and  be  proven  and  read  in  evidence,  in  like  manner  as 
ordinances  passed  by  the  common  council  of  the  city  of  Auburn ;  a  record  or 
entry  made  by  the  said  clerk  at  the  time  of  the  first  publication  of  any  ordinance, 
or  a  copy  thereof  duly  certified  by  him,  or  the  affidavit  of  the  printer  or 
publisher,"  shall  be  presumptive  evidence,  of  the  publication  thereof,  in  all  courts 
and  places. 

§  14.  Whenever  the  inhabitants  of  any  school  district  shall,  by  vote,  determine 
to  "build  a  school-house,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  board  of  education  to 
fix  the  site  of  the  said  school-house,  and  determine  the  sum  necessary  to  be 
raised  for  the  purchase  of  such  site  and  the  building  of  said  school-house,  and 


366  AUBURN. 

report  the  same  to  the  common  council,  which  sum  shall  in  no  case  exceed  the 
sum  of  three  thousand  dollars. 

§  15.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  common  council  to  levy  and  raise  upon  the 
said  district  the  sum  so  reported,  pursuant  to  the  last  section,  in  the  same  manner 
as  the  general  taxes  of  the  city  are  levied  or  raised,  except  that  the  same  shal' 
be  collected  on  a  separate  warrant,  and  when  the  same  shall  be  collected  it  shah 
be  paid  to  the  city  treasurer  and  deposited  to  the  credit  of  the  board  of  educa- 
tion ;  and  no  part  thereof  shall  be  appropriated  by  said  board  otherwise  than  for 
the  purchase  and  improvement  of  such  site  and  the  erection  of  such  school-house, 
with  the  appurtenances. 

§  16.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  annually,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of 
June,  fix  and  determine,  and  certify  and  report  to  the  common  council,  the 
amount  of  money  which,  when  added  to  the  money  annually  apportioned  to  the 
city  of  Auburn  or  to  the  several  school  districts  comprised  therein  out  of 
the  funds  belonging  to  the  state,  shall  be  necessary  to  defray  the  expenses  of  all 
the  common  or  district  schools  in  said  city,  for  the  ensuing  year,  for  fuel,  furniture, 
school  apparatus,  repairs  and  insurance  of  school-house,  teachers'  wages  and 
contingent  expenses,  and  also  to  defray  the  expenses  of  a  school  for  colored 
children,  as  hereinafter  provided,  and  to  pay  the  compensation  of  the  clerk  of 
the  board  of  education  and  the  contingent  expenses  of  such  board.  The  amount 
so  certified  shall  in  no  case  exceed  five  times  the  amount  which  shall  have  been 
apportioned  out  of  the  funds  belonging  to  the  state,  as  aforesaid,  for  the  year  next 
preceding. 

§  17.  The  common  council  of  the  said  city  shall  annually  levy  and  raise  the 
amount  of  money  so  certified  and  reported  by  the  board  of  education,  and  the 
said  amount  so  to  be  raised  shall  be  levied  and  collected  at  the  same  time  and  in 
the  same  manner  as  the  other  general  taxes  of  the  said  city  are  levied  and  raised, 
and  in  addition  thereto;  but  the  warrant  issued  to  the  collector  for  the  collection 
of  such  taxes  shall  specify  what  amount  of  such  taxes  shall  be  paid  to  the 
treasurer  for  general  city  purposes,  and  what  part  as  a  fund  for  the  support  of 
schools. 

§  18.  All  moneys  levied  and  raised  for  the  support  of  common  schools,  together 
with  the  public  money  received  from  the  state,  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of 
the  city  of  Auburn,  and  shall  by  him  be  kept  separate  and  distinct  from  the  other 
moneys  of  said  city,  and  shall  be  known  and  distinguished  as  the  common  school 
fund,  and  shall  be  paid  out  by  the  treasurer  only  upon  an  order  drawn  upon 
him,  and  signed  by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the  clerk  of  said  board  of 
education ;  and  no  such  order  shall  be  drawn  except  by  virtue  of  a  resolution  of 
the  board.  Such  order  shall  specify  for  what  purpose  the  amount  specified 
therein  is  to  be  paid ;  and  the  clerk  of  such  board  shall  keep  an  accurate  account, 
under  the  appropriate  heads  of  expenditure,  of  all  orders  drawn  on  the  treasury, 
in  a  check  book,  to  be  kept  by  him  for  that  purpose. 

§  19.  The  board  of  supervisors  of  Cayuga  county  shall  not  have  power  to 
levy  any  tax  upon  the  city  of  Auburn  for  the  support  or  on  account  of  common 
schools. 

§  20.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  exclusively  audit  all  accounts  and 
claims  against  any  school  district,  or  which  have  accrued  on  account  of  any  dis- 
trict school  in  said  city ;  and  the  payment  of  the  same,  or  of  such  parts  thereof  as 
shall  be  allowed  by  the  said  board,  shall  be  made  directly  to  such  claimants  by 
the  city  treasurer  out  of  the  moneys  belonging  to  the  common  school  fund,  upon 
the  order  of  said  board,  as  hereinbefore  provided ;  but  the  aggregate  of  the  expen- 
ditures and  contracts  of  the  said  board,  during  any  year,  shall  not  exceed  the 
amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  subject  to  their  order  during  the  then  current 
year. 

§  21.  Whenever,  from  the  annual  estimate  presented  to  the  common  council  by 
said  board  of  education,  it  shall  appear  that  the  expenses  of  any  school  district 
for  the  ensuing  year,  exclusive  of  teachers'  wages,  will  exceed  the  sum  of  fifty 
dollars,  the  common  council  may,  in  their  discretion,  order  the  amount  of  such 
excess  to  be  levied  and  assessed  upon  and  collected  from  such  district,  in  the 


AUBURN".  381 

manner  hereinbefore  provided  for  raising  moneys  to  btifld  a  school-house ;  and 
sucli  moneys,  when  so  collected,  shall  lie  paid  to  the  city  treasurer,  ami  be  by  him 
placed  to  the  credit  of  the  said  board  of  education,  and  shall  by  said  board  be 
expended  solely  for  the  benefit  of  such  district. 

§  22.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  establish  and  cause  to 
be  kept  in  said  city  a  school  for  the  instruction  of  colored  children,  as 
they  shall  deem  expedient,  and  the  said  board  shall  have  and  exercise  all  the 
powers,  in  relation  to  such  school,  of  trustees  of  school  districts  in  towns,  as  far 
as  applicable. 

§  23.  Whenever  the  said  board  of  education  shall  determine  to  establish  a  school 
for  the  instruction  of  colored  children,  they  shall  make  an  estimate  of  the  expense 
of  erecting  a  suitable  school-house  therefor,  and  determine  the  site  thereof,  and 
report  such  proceedings  to  the  common  council. 

§  21.  The  common  council  shall  have  power  to  raise  by  general  tax,  in  the 
manner  hereinbefore  provided,  and  on  a  separate  warrant,  or  in  addition  to  the 
general  city  tax,  such  sum  as  shall  be  necessary  to  purchase  such  site  and  build 
such  school-house,  not  exceeding  three  thousand  dollars ;  or  the  said  common 
council  may  refuse  to  raise  such  tax.  In  case  the  common  council  shall  refuse 
to  raise  such  tax,  the  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  provide  and 
lease  a  suitable  room  or  building  for  the  accommodation  of  such  school,  but  the 
annual  expenditure  for  this  purpose  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  one  hundred 
dollars — the  same  to  be  paid  from  the  common  school  fund. 

§  25.  All  teachers  of  common  schools  in  said  city  shall  be  employed  by  the 
city  superintendent  of  common  schools  and  the  trustees  of  the  district  for  which 
sucli  teacher  or  teachers  shall  be  employed  ;  but  no  appointment  or  employment 
of  any  such  teacher  shall  be  valid  beyond  the  first  regular  meeting  of  the  board 
of  education  thereafter,  unless  such  appointment  shall  be  approved  by  such  board  ; 
and  all  contracts  made  with  teachers  by  said  superintendent  and  any  trustee,  shall 
be  subject  to  the  provisions  of  this  act;  and  such  contract  shall  cease  to  be  bind- 
ing on  the  rejection  of  such  teacher  by  the  board  of  education. 

§  26.- The  said  board  of  education  may  remove  any  teacher  for  cause,  to  he 
specified  in  the  minutes  of  the  proceedings  of  the  said  board  ;  and  in  case  of  any 
such  removal,  any  contract  with  any  such  teacher  shall  cease,  and  another  teacher 
shall  be  employed  in  the  manner  provided  in  the  last  preceding  section. 

§  27.  To  the  first  annual  estimate  of  school  expenses,  presented  by  the  hoard  of 
education  to  the  common  council,  the  said  board  shall  add  the  present  indebted- 
ness of  every  school  district  within  said  city  for  any  of  the  causes  specified  in 
section  (16)  sixteen  of  this  act,  or  which  may  necessarily  accrue  therefor  previous 
to  the  time  of  presentation  of  such  first  estimate ;  and  such  additional  amount 
shall  be  raised  in  like  manner  as  the  other  moneys  stated  in  said  estimate,  and 
shall  be  paid  into  and  compose  a  part  of  the  common  school  fund,  and  the  said 
board  shall  assume  and  pay  such  indebtedness  out  of  the  moneys  so  received. 

§  28.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  annually  publish,  in  some  newspaper  in 
said  city,  a  statement  of  the  number  of  common  schools  in  said  city  and  the  num- 
ber of  pupils  instructed  therein,  the  total  amount  of  moneys  received  for  school 
purposes,  with  the  sources  thereof,  and  the  expenditures  on  account  of  each 
school,  specifying  as  near  as  may  be  the  items  of  such  expenditures. 

§  29.  An  appeal  may  be  taken  to  the  state  superintendent  of  common  schools 
from  any  proceeding  of  the  said  board  of  education  in  the  formation  or  alteration 
of  any  school  district,  in  the  same  manner  and  for  the  same  causes  as  appeals 
may  be  taken  from  the  proceedings  of  town  superintendents  of  common  schools. 

§  30.  All  titles  to  real  estate  to  be  used  for  school  purposes,  with  the  exception 
of  a  site  for  a  school-house  for  colored  children,  shall  be  taken  in  the  name  of 
the  trustee.of  the  district,  in  which  such  real  estate  shall  be  situated,  in  his 
official  name;  and  any  real  estate  now  or  hereafter  owned  by  any  school  district 
may  be  sold  by  the  trustees  of  such  district,  upon  a  vote  of  the  inhabitants  of 
said  district,  and  with  the  approval  of  the  said  board  of  education ;  and  the  avails 
of  such  real  estate  shall  be  paid  to  the  city  treasurer,  and  be  by  him  placed  to 
the  credit  of  the  board  of  education,  and  by  said  board  appropriated  exclusively 
to  the  benefit  of  such  district. 


308  BROOKLYN. 

§  31.  The  treasurer  and  collector  of  the  city  of  Auburn  shall  respectively,  with 
their  sureties,  be  liable  on  their  official  bonds  for  any  default,  delinquency, 
neglect  or  misconduct  in  the  duties  with  which  they  may  be  respectively  charged, 
under  and  by  virtue  of  this  act,  in  the  same  manner  and  with  the  like  effect  as  for 
any  other  official  default,  delinquency,  neglect  or  misconduct. 

§  32.  All  acts  and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  with  this  act  are  hereby  repealed. 

By  §  12,  chap.  207  of  1852,  the  school  of  the  Cayuga  asylum  for  destitute 
children  is  to  be  considered  a  separate  and  additional  district  school  of  the  city 
of  Auburn,  subject  to  the  general  supervision  of  the  board  of  education,  and  enti- 
tled to  a  distributive  share  of  school  moneys. 


BROOKLYN. 

[  Laws  of  1850,  chap.  143.  ] 

Section  1.  The  common  council  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn  shall,  on  the  first 
Monday  of  February  after  this  act  becomes  a  law,  appoint  thirty-three  persons, 
residents  of  said  city,  one  of  whom  at  least  shall  reside  in  each  school  district 
thereof,  who  together  shall  constitute  a  board  of  education.  It  shall  then  divide 
the  said  board  into  three  equal  classes,  each  class  containing  eleven  members, 
and  shall  determine  by  lot  their  respective  terms  of  office,  so  that  the  first  class 
shall  serve  one  year,  the  second  two  years,  and  the  third  three  years.  In  each 
year  thereafter  the  said  common  council  shall  appoint  eleven  members  of  said 
board,  care  being  had  to  preserve  the  representation  of  at  least  one  member  from 
each  school  district,  whose  term  of  office  shall  continue  three  years,  and,  in  case  a 
vacancy  shall  at  any  time  occur  in  said  board,  the  said  council  shall  supply  the 
same.  The  persons  so  appointed  shall  be  reeligible,  and  shall  hold  office  until 
their  successors  are  appointed  and  shall  have  qualified. 

§  2.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  the  entire  charge  and  direction  of  all 
the  public  schools  of  said  city,  and  of  the  school  moneys  raised  for  the  support 
of  the  same,  and  shall  possess  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  the  general  duties  of 
trustees  of  common  schools  in  this  state,  so  far  as  the  same  are  not  impaired  or 
affected  by  this  act.  It  shall  annually  choose  a  presiding  officer,  make  its  own 
by-laws,  keep  a  journal  of  its  proceedings,  define  the  duties  of  its  officers  and 
committees,  and  prescribe  such  rules  and  regulations,  for  instruction  and  disci- 
pline in  said  public  schools,  as  are  not  inconsistent  with  the  laws  of  the  state ; 
and  all  the  provisions  of  the  act  relating  to  resignations  and  expulsions  in  the 
common  council  shall  be  applicable  to  the  board  of  education. 

§  3.  The  whole  city  shall  be  a  school  district  for  all  purposes  of  taxation,  as 
well  for  the  purchase  of  school  sites  and  the  building  and  repairing  of  school- 
houses  as  for  the  annual  support  of  schools;  but  shall  be  divided  by  the  board 
of  education  into  as  many  districts  as  there  are  schools,  for  the  purpose  of  deter- 
mining the  limits  within  which  children  may  attend  such  schools. 

§  4.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  organize  and  establish  schools 
for  colored  children,  and  such  evening  schools  as  it  may  from  time  to  time  deem 
expedient,  and  shall  adopt  the  necessary  rules  for  the  government  of  the  same. 
It  may  make  use  of  the  public  school-houses  under  its  charge  for  such  evening 
schools,  and  the  expenses  of  such  evening  schools  shall  be  paid  out  of  the  general 
fund,  in  the  same  manner  as  those  of  the  other  public  schools.  No  person  shall 
be  prohibited  from  attending  the  evening  schools  on  account  of  age. 

§  5.  The  board  of  elucation  shall  appoint  a  city  superintendent  of  common 
schools,  who  shall,  ex-officio,  be  the  secretary  of  the  board.  In  addition  to  such 
other  duties  as  may  be  devolved  upon  him  by  the  board,  in  the  visitation  and 
superintendence  of  the  schools,  he  shall  examine  the  qualifications  of  teachers, 
and  grant  certificates  in  such  manner  and  form  as  may  be  prescribed  by  the  State 
Superintendent ;  which  shall  not  be  in  force  longer  than  a  year,  and  may  at  any 


BROOKLYN.  8<50 

time  be  revoked  by  the  board  of  education.  He  shall  also  make  such  annual  and 
other  reports  of  the  condition  of  the  schools,  and  of  other  matters,  as  may  be 
required  hy  law  or  by  the  said  board.  He  shall  be  paid  a  salary  out  of  the  gene- 
ra] fund,  to  be  fixed  hy  the  board,  and  may  be  removed  from  office  hy  the  vote 
of  a  majority  of  all  the  members  of  the  board  of  education. 

§  6.  The  treasurer  of  the  city  shall  he,  ex-officio,  the  treasurer  of  the  board  of 
education,  and  shall  receive  to  the  credit  of  said  board,  from  the  county  treasurer, 
the  amount  of  school  money  to  which  the  city  is  entitled  from  the  state  appro- 
priation, together  with  such  amount  as  is  raised  by  the  board  of  supervisors  to 
entitle  the  city  to  its  distributive  share  of  the  school  moneys  of  the  state,  and 
from  the  city  collector  the  money  raised  by  tax  for  the  support  of  schools,  and 
he  shall  disburse  the  same  only  by  the  order  and  upon  the  warrant  of  the  board  of 
education,  drawn  in  favor  of  the  person  entitled  to  payment,  signed  by  the  pre- 
siding officer  of  the  board  and  countersigned  by  its  secretary. 

§  7.  The  treasurer  shall  give  such  bonds  for  the  faithful  performance  of  his 
duty  as  the  common  council  may  require ;  and  shall  report  monthly  to  the  board 
of  education  his  receipts  and  expenditures,  with  the  balance  remaining  on  hand 
to  the  credit  of  the  board,  and  such  other  information  in  relation  thereto  as  the 
board  of  education  may,  from  time  to  time,  require. 

§  8.  [Repealed  by  section  13,  title  11,  chapter  384  of  1854.] 

§  9.  The  board  of  education  shall  present,  annually,  on  or  before  the  first 
Monday  in  February,  to  the  common  council,  an  estimate  of  the  money  required 
to  be  raised  in  the  ensuing  year  for  the  support  of  the  schools  and  for  the  pur- 
chase of  school  sites,  as  well  as  for  the  building  and  repairing  of  school-houses; 
and  the  common  council  shall  determine  what  sums  shall  be  raised  for  such  pur- 
poses, respectively,  in  addition  to  the  amount  already  required  by  law,  in  order 
to  entitle  the  city  to  its  distributive  share  of  the  state  school  money. 

§  10.  The  amount  of  money  to  be  raised  for  the  support  of  schools  in  any  one 
year,  exclusive  of  the  sums  required  to  purchase  sites  and  to  build  and  repair 
school-houses,  as  well  as  to  entitle  the  city  to  its  share  of  the  state  school  money, 
shall  not  be  less  than  one  dollar  and  twenty-five  cents  nor  more  than  one  dollar 
and  seventy-five  cents~for  each  child  between  the  ages  of  five  and  sixteen  years 
within  the  city  —  as  ascertained  by  the  previous  census,  herein  required  to  be 
taken  on  the  thirty-first  day  of  December  in  each  year. 

§  11.  The  several  amounts  so  determined  by  the  common  council  to  be  raised, 
as  aforesaid,  shall  be  levied  upon  all  the  taxable  property  of  the  city,  in  Hie  same 
manner  and  at  the  same  time  as  the  taxes  for  city  purposes,  and  shall  be  stated 
and  sent  to  the  board  of  county  supervisors  to  be  levied  and  collected  accordingly. 

§  12.  The  board  of  supervisors,  in  their  warrant  to  the  collector,  shall  direct 
him  to  pay  the  amount  so  to  be  collected  to  the  treasurer  of  the  city,  to  the  credit 
of  the  board  of  education,  out  of  the  first  moneys  collected. 

§  13.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  first  board  of  city  assessors  elected  after  this 
law  shall  take  effect  to  estimate  the  value  of  the  school  property  of  each  school 
district,  as  heretofore  existing,  and  certify  the  same  to  the  board  of  supervisors. 
The  supervisors  shall  thereupon  proceed  to  equalize  the  said  value  by  assessing 
the  aggregate  amount  thereof  upon  the  whole  city,  and  crediting  each  school 
district,  on  account  of  its  general  tax,  with  the  value  of  its  separate  school  pro- 
perty, and  its  special  school  taxes  already  laid  and  in  progress  of  collection. 

§  14.  The  board  of  education  shall  determine  the  number  and  location  of 
schools ;  but  no  expenditures  for  the  purchase  of  ground  or  the  erection  of  school- 
houses  shall  hereafter  be  made,  unless  the  same  shall  have  be?n  approved  by  the 
common  council.  Such  approval  shall  be  deemed  to  have  been  given  when  the 
tax  therefor  shall  be  approved  by  the  common  council  and  levied  by  the  super- 
visors ;  or  it  may  .be  specially  given,  upon  the  application  of  the  board  of  edu- 
cation to  make  such  expenditure,  in  anticipation  of  a  tax  to  be  levied  in  the 
ensuing  year. 

§  15.  The  title  of  all  the  property  now  or  hereafter  to  be  required  for  school 
purposes  shall  be  vested  in  the  board  of  education. 

§  16.  The  board  of  education  shall  determine  whether  any  and  what  portion 
of  the  state  appropriation  and  the  county  tax,  designated  as  library  mouey, 

[Code.]  47 


370  BROOKLYN. 

shall  be  applied  to  the  purchase  of  school  libraries  and  apparatus,  and  the  dispo- 
sition thereof;  and  the  residue  of  said  money  shall  be  applied  to  the  payment  of 
teachers'  wages  or  for  the  purchase  of  school  books,  and  to  no  other  purpose. 

§  17.  The  money  raised  for  the  purchase  of  school  sites,  and  the  building, 
repairing  and  furnishing  of  school-houses,  shall  be  known  as  the  "  special  school 
fund,"  and  all  other  moneys  as  the  "  general  school  fund;"  and  it  shall  the  duty 
of  the  board  of  education  to  keep  accurate  accounts  of  its  recepts  and  expendi- 
tures, distinguishing  between  those  of  a  general  and  those  of  a  special  character; 
and  it  shall  not  be  lawful  to  expend  any  portion  of  the  moneys  raised  for  the  use 
of  one  of  said  funds  for  the  purposes  of  the  other  of  said  funds,  but  the  expen- 
ditures shall  be  made  in  conformity  with  the  appropriations  under  which  the 
funds  were  levied  and  collected. 

§  18.  The  board  of  education  shall  make  returns  annually  to  the  common 
council  of  its  receipts  and  expenditures,  specifying  those  on  account  of  the 
general  and  special  funds,  respectively,  with  such  other  details  as  the  common 
council  may  from  time  to  time  require. 

§  19.  No  school  in  said  city  shall  be  entitled  to  any  portion  of  the  school  moneys, 
in  which  the  religious  sectarian  doctrine  or  tenets  of  any  particular  christian  or 
other  religious  sect  shall  be  taught  or  inculcated,  or  which  shall  refuse  or  pro- 
hibit visits  or  examination  by  the  city  superintendents  or  members  of  the  board 
of  education  of  said  city;  provided  that  this  section  shall  not  be  deemed  to 
prohibit  the  use  of  the  holy  scriptures  without  note  or  comment. 


[Laws  of  1851,  chap.  229.] 

§  15.  The  amount  of  money  to  be  raised  in  any  one  year  for  the  support  of 
common  schools  in  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  exclusive  of  the  sums  required  to  pur- 
chase sites,  to  build  and  repair  school-houses,  and  to  entitle  the  city  to  its  share 
of  the  state  school  money,  shall  be  such  sum  as  the  said  common  council  may 
deem  necessary  therefor,  not  to  exceed  the  amount  now  allowed  by  law. 

By  chap.  384  of  1854,  the  cities  of  Brooklyn  and  Williamsburgh  and  the  town 
of  Bushwick  were  consolidated  into  one  municipal  government.  Section  13, 
title  11  of  that  act  is  as  follows  : 

§  13.  There  shall  be  a  board  of  education,  and  all  the  provisions  of  law  relating 
to  the  board  of  education  of  the  present  city  of  Brooklyn  shall  apply  thereto, 
except  that  the  board  hereby  authorized  shall  be  constituted  of  the  members  of 
the  said  present  board,  and  such  additional  members  as  may  be  appointed  by  the 
common  council  for  the  portion  of  the  city  embraced  in  the  present  city  of  Wil- 
liamsburgh and  town  of  Bushwick,  and  the  said  common  council  is  hereby 
authorized  and  required  to  appoint  and  classify  such  additional  members,  having 
reference  therein  to  the  proportional  increase  of  inhabitants  by  the  additional  ter- 
ritory ;  and  the  school  property  of  the  cities  of  Brooklyn  and  Williamsburgh  and 
town  of  Bushwick,  and  the  several  districts  thereof,  shall  be  valued  by  the  first 
board  of  assessors  elected  after  this  act  shall  take  effect,  and  the  board  of  super- 
visors of  the  county  shall  proceed  to  equalize  the  said  value,  by  assessing  the 
aggregate  amount  thereof  upon  the  whole  city,  and  crediting  each  school  district 
(the  city  of  Brooklyn  to  be  considered  as  one  district),  on  account  of  its  general 
tax,  with  the  value  of  its  separate  school  property,  and  any  special  school  taxes 
already  laid  and  in  process  of  collection.  The  eighth  and  twentieth  sections  of 
the  act  entitled  to  reorganize  and  regulate  the  common  schools  and  board  Of 
education  of  the  city  of  Brooklyn,  passed  April  4,  1850,  is  hereby  repealed. 


BUFFALO.  371 


BUFFALO. 

Title  5,  chap.  230  of  1853,  of  the  assessment  and  collection  of  taxes  in  the  city 
of  Buffalo,  requires  the  common  council,  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of  the  members 
elected,  to  fix  the  amount  of  taxes  to  be  collected  for  various  purposes,  and  to 
make  a  statement  thereof  to  be  entered  in  their  minutes.  In  respect  to  such 
amount  and  statement,  it  enacts: 

§  6.  In  such  amount  shall  be  included  the  sums  required  for  the  support  of  the 
free  schools  of  the  city  for  twelve  months,  and  to  pay  such  principal  and  interest 
of  such  portion  of  the  funded  debt  of  the  city  as  shall  be  due  or  fall  due  within 
eighteen  months  after  the  said  first  day  of  April,  and  is  not  otherwise  provided 
for ;  the  amount  determined  upon  shall  be  raised  as  a  gross  tax  on  one  assessment. 


T  Laws  of  1853,  chap.  230.  ] 

TITLE    VI. OP     PUBLIC     SCHOOLS. 

§  1.  The  common  council  shall  possess  all  the  rights,  powers  and  authority, 
and  shall  perform  all  the  duties,  in  and  for  the  city,  of  commissioners  of  common 
schools. 

§2.  The  clerk  of  the  city  shall  be  the  clerk  of  the  common  council,  when 
acting  as  commissioners  of  common  schools,  and  shall  perform  the  duties  required 
of  the  town  clerks  of  the  several  towns  in  the  state  as  clerks  of  the  commissioners 
of  common  schools  of  such  towns,  and  be  subject  to  the  same  penalties  for  the 
neglect  thereof. 

§  3.  In  all  appropriations  of  public  money  for  school  or  other  purposes  the 
city  shall  be  regarded  as  a  town  in  the  county  of  Erie,  and  shall  be  entitled  to 
copies  of  laws  in  the  same  manner  as  other  towns  in  said  county,  and  all  such 
moneys  and  books  shall  be  paid  and  delivered  to  the  common  council. 

§  4.  The  common  council  may  expend  such  portion  as  they  may  deem  proper 
of-any  library  moneys  hereafter  received  from  the  state  in  binding  and  repairing 
the  books  in  the  school  libraries,  in  purchasing  maps  and  other  apparatus  for  the 
schools,  and  in  supplying  indigent  scholars  in  the  schools  under  their  charge  with 
Decessary  common  school  books  and  other  implements  of  learning. 

§  5.  All  the  public  schools  organized  in  the  city  of  Buffalo  shall  be  free  to  all 
white  children,  over  the  age  of  five  and  under  the  age  of  eighteen  years,  residing 
within  their  respective  districts. 

§  6.  All  moneys  raised  fer  school  purposes  shall  constitute  a  separate  fund,  to 
be  called  the  school  fund  ;  a  separate  account  thereof  shall  be  kept  by  the  proper 
officers  of  the  city,  and  the  moneys  shall  not  be  appropriated  to  any  other  purpose. 

§  7.  The  common  council  shall  provide  and  maintain  one  or  more  fr°e  schools 
in  the  city  for  the  colored  children  thereof,  and  may  purchase  lands,  and  erect 
thereon,  furnish  and  maintain  all  buildings  necessary  for  such  schools;  and  shall 
from  time  to  time  raise  all  money  necessary  for  these  purposes  by  general  tax. 

§  8.  The  common  council  may,  whenever  they  shall  deem  it  expedient, 
establish,  maintain  and  regulate  a  central  school,  in  which  shall  be  taught  the 
higher  branches  of  English  education  authorized  by  the  common  school  laws  of 
this  state,  and  buy  such  land  and  erect  such  buildings  thereon  as  may  be  neces- 
sary for  the  purpose,  and  raise  the  necessary  money  as  a  part  of  the  general  city 
tax. 

§  9.  The  common  council  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  whenever 
it  may  be  necessary : 

1st.  To  purchase  or  lease,  in  any  portion  of  said  city,  land  for  schoc!hcuse3, 
and  to  fence  and  improve  the  same  ; 

2d.  To  build  on  such  lands,  or  any  lot  owned  by  any  district  in  said  city,  such 
buildings  as  shall  to  them  appear  suitable ; 


372  BUFFALO. 

3d.  To  complete,  improve,  enlarge  or  repair  any  school-house,  from  time  to 
time  to  supply  it  with  fuel  and  such  school  apparatus,  books,  furniture  and 
appendages  as  may  be  necessary,  and  to  prescribe  the  studies  to  be  pursued 
therein ; 

4th.  To  make  such  ordinances  as  they  may  deem  necessary  for  the  prosperity, 
good  order  and  government  of  the  schools,  and  the  security  and  preservation  of 
the  school-houses  and  other  property  belonging  to  the  school  department  of  the 
city,  and  to  prescribe  the  duties  and  powers  of  the  superintendent  of  schools  and 
school  examiners,  in  all  cases  not  provided  for  in  this  act ; 

5th.  T,o  divide  the  schools  in  said  city  into  primary  and  higher  departments, 
or  otherwise,  to  prescribe  regulations  for  the  transfer  of  scholars  from  one  depart- 
ment to  another,  and  to  direct  the  superintendent  to  provide  suitable  and  suffi- 
cient instructors  for  each  department ; 

6th.  To  order,  from  time  to  time,  a  tax  to  be  levied  upon  the  taxable  property 
of  any  district,  sufficient  to  pay  all  such  sums  as  they  may  dee'm  necessary  to  be 
expended  in  such  district  for  the  purchase  of  or  paymenk  for  land  therein,  and 
the  building  and  furnishing  of  school-houses  and  their  appurtenances; 

7th.  To  appoint,  from  time  to  time,  a  board  of  examiners,  to  consist  of  three  per- 
sons, whose  duty  it  shall  be,  at  least  once  in  each  school  term,  to  visit  and  examine 
all  the  departments  of  the  several  public  schools,  and  to  report  to  the  common 
council,  at  the  close  of  each  term,  their  condition  and  progress.  Such  examiners 
shall  be  paid  by  the  city  not  exceeding  two  dollars  for  each  day  actually  spent 
by  them  in  such  examinations,  not  exceeding  fifty  days  each  in  any  one  year. 

§  10.  Whenever  the  common  council  shall  hereafter  order  a  lot  to  be  purchased 
and  a  school-house  to  be  built  thereon,  except  for  the  purpose  of  a  central  school, 
they  shall  describe  the  district  upon  which  the  expenses  of  the  purchase  of  such 
lot  and  the  building  of  such  house  shall  be  assessed,  and  the  expenses  of  such  lot 
and  building  shall  be  assessed  by  the  board  of  assessors,  in  the  same  manner  as 
other  assessments  are  made,  upon  the  taxable  property  of  that  district  only, 
except  as  instituted  in  the  next  session. 

§  11.  When  such  new  district  shall  be  composed,  in  whole  or  in  part,  of  one  or 
more  previously  existing  districts,  in  which  there  shall  be  one  or  more  public 
school-houses,  the  assessors,  in  making  the  assessment  for  suclj  new  lot  and  build- 
ing, shall  charge  and  assess  upon  the  remaining  portions  of  such  districts,  respec- 
tively, such  sums  as  to  them  shall  appear  just,  having  regard  to  the  actual  value 
of  such  lots  and  buildings,  as  well  as  to  the  sums  paid  therefor  by  the  property 
included  in  such  new  district,  and  the  balance  shall  be  assessed  upon  the  taxable 
property  in  such  new  district.  But  all  such  sums  shall  be  included  in  one  assess- 
ment roll,  and  shall  be  collected  in  the  same  manner  as  other  assessments.  [.4s 
amended  by  §  13,  chap.  99  o/1856.] 

§  12.  The  superintendent  of  common  schools  of  the  city  shall  be  the  executive 
officer  of  the  common  council,  to  carry  into  effect  all  the  provisions  of  this  act, 
and  the  ordinances  and  orders  of  the  counci\  in  respect  to  common  schools ;  and 
the  common  council  may  assign  to  the  said  superintendent  the  performance  of  any 
duty  required  of  them  in  respect  to  the  common  schools  of  said  city.  He  shall, 
in  respect  to  the  common  schools  of  the  city,  possess  all  the  powers  and  authority, 
and  be  subject  to  the  duties  and  obligations  of  the  inspectors  of  common  schools 
of  the  different  towns  of  this  state.  He  shall  also  have  power,  and  it  shall  be 
his  duty  : 

1.  To  have  the  care  and  custody  and  provide  for  the  safe  keeping  of  public 
school-houses  in  said  city  ; 

2.  To  contract  with  and  employ  all  teachers  of  the  several  public  schools 
therein,  under  the  direction  of  the  common  council ; 

3.  To  contract  for  and  superintend  the  building,  enlarging,  improving,  furnish- 
ing and  repairing  of  all  school-houses  ordered  by  the  common  council,  and  all 
repairs  and  improvements  around  the  same  ; 

1.  In  cases  where  no  other  provision  is  made  by  this  act,  to  supply  the  place 
and  perform  the  several  duties  in  respect  to  the  several  school  districts  in  said  city 


C  AMILLUS  —  C  AN  AND  AIGU  A — C  ASTLETON.  3  T  3 

required  of  the  trustees  of  the  several  school  districts  in  this  state  by  the  general 
statutes  relating  to  common  schools ; 

5.  To  perform  such  other  duties  as  may  be  from  time  to  time  imposed  upon 
him  by  the  common  council. 

§  13.  The  common  council  shall  annually  publish  a  statement  of  the  number  of 
public  schools  in  the  said  city,  the  number  of  pupils  instructed  therein  the  year 
preceding,  the  several  branches  of  education  pursued  by  them,  and  the  receipts 
and  expenditures  of  each  school,  specifying  the  sources  of  such  receipts  and  the 
objects  of  such  expenditures. 

[Laws  o/1856,  chap.  123.] 

§  30.  The  schools  established  and  maintained  by  the  Buffalo  Juvenile  Asylum 
shall  participate  in  the  distribution  of  the  common  school  fund,  in  the  same  "man- 
ner and  degree  as  the  common  schools  of  the  city  of  Buffalo. 


DISTRICT  No.  1  — CAMILLUS  AND  GEDDES. 

[Laws  o/1852,  chap.  249.] 

Section  1.  The  le^al  voters  in  joint  school  district  number  one,  formed  from 
parts  of  the  towns  of  Camillus  and  Geddcs,  in  the  county  of  Onondaga,  are  hereby 
authorized,  from  time  to  time,  at  any  meeting  of  said  school  district,  to  empower, 
by  resolution,  the  trustees  of  said  district  to  keep  the  accounts  of  the  wages 
of  the  teacher  of  the  highest  department  of  the  principal  school  in  said  district 
separate  from  the  accounts  of  the  wages  of  the  other  teachers  in  said  district, 
and  to  apply  a  just  proportion  of  the  public  money  to  the  payment  of  such 
teacher's  wages,  and  to  make  out  a  separate  rate  bill  for  the  collection  of  the 
remainder  of  such  teacher's  wages  from  the  scholars  that  were  instructed  by  the 
principal  teacher,  which  rate  bill  shall  be  collectable  in  all  respects  as  other  rate 
bills  are  collected. 


CANANDAIGUA. 

Chap.  291,  Laws  of  1852,  authorizes  the  inhabitants  of  the  village  of  Canan- 
daigua  to  vote  and  raise  by  tax  the  sum  of  $1500,  for  the  purpose  of  building  a 
school-house  to  be  used  for  the  education  of  colored  children  exclusively.  They 
are  also  authorized  to  raise  each  year,  by  tax,  a  sufficient  sum  to  pay  for  teacher's 
wages,  fuel,  library  and  necessary  expenses  of  said  school.  For  the  purpose  of 
managing  it,  the  trustees  of  the  village  are  vested  with  the  powers  of  trustees  of 
a  school  district,  and  they  are  required  to  keep  it  open  with  a  competent  teacher 
at  least  six  months  in  each  year. 


DISTRICT  ,No.  1  — CASTLETON  AND  SOUTHFIELD. 
[  Laws  of  1855,  chap.  280.  ] 

Section  1.  School  district  number  one,  in  the  towns  of  Castleton  and  South- 
field,  in  the  county  of  Richmond,  shall  form  a  permanent  school  district,  and 
shall  not  be  subject  to  alteration  by  the  town  superintendent  of  common  schools 
for  the  towns  in  which  said  district  is  situated. 

§  2.  The  said  district  shall  be  under  the  direction  of  a  board,  to  be  styled  "  The 
Board  of  Education,"  which  board  shall  consist  of  three  members,  two  of  whom 
shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business.     James  0.  Ludlow, 


374  CASTLETON. 

James  Anketel  and  Theodore  Frean  shall  compose  the  first  board  of  education, 
and  hold  their  office  from  one  to  three  years  ;  that  is  to  say,  one  shall  go  out  of 
office  in  each  year,  and  in  the  order  in  which  their  names  stand  recorded  in  this 
section. 

§  3.  At  the  annual  meeting  of  said  district,  in  each  year,  there  shall  be  elected 
for  three  years  one  member  of  said  board  of  education,  who  shall  be  a  resident 
and  taxable  inhabitant  of  said  district;  said  election,  and  all  other  elections  pro- 
vided for  by  this  act,  shall  be  held  by  three  inspectors,  to  be  appointed  by  said 
meeting  or  the  moderator  thereof,  as  the  people  assembled  in  annual  meeting 
may  determine ;  said  election  shall  be  by  ballot,  and  shall  be  conducted  in  all 
respects  and  in  the  same  manner  as  is  now  provided  by  law  for  the  election  of 
trustees  in  school  districts  in  this  state. 

§  4.  The  said  board  of  education  may  make  all  necessary  by-laws  for  their 
government ;  they  shall  have  the  entire  control  and  management  of  all  the  com- 
mon schools  within  said  district,  and  all  the  property  belonging  to  the  same,  and 
they  shall  have  and  possess,  within  said  district,  all  the  rights,  powers  and 
authority  of  town  superintendent  of  common  schools,  and  they  shall  provide  for 
keeping  a  school  in  said  district  at  least  eight  months  in  each  year,  and  as  much 
longer  as  may  be  deemed  practicable;  they  may  appoint  a  collector,  with  all  the 
powers  and  duties  of  a  district  collector,  or  may  employ  the  town  collector  of 
either  of  said  towns  for  that  purpose,  and  such  collector  shall  collect  and  pay 
over  the  school  moneys  assessed  upon  said  district  to  the  said  board  of  education, 
in  the  same  manner  and  under  the  same  conditions  as  is  imposed  by  the  laws  of 
the  town  of  which  he  is  such  collector.  They  shall  require  at  least  ono  of  the 
members  of  said  board  to  visit  each  school  in  said  district  at  least  once  in  each 
week,  to  render  such  assistance  to  the  teacher  and  advice  to  the  pupils  as  may  be 
necessary,  and  to  see  that  the  regulations  are  rigidly  adhered  to. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  levy 
and  collect  by  tax,  in  each  year,  upon  all  the  taxable  property  «nd  inhabitants  in 
said  district,  such  sum  as  may  be  necessary,  not  exceeding  in  amount  two-fifths 
of  one  per  cent  on  the  value  of  such  taxable  property,  as  the  same  shall  be 
assessed  by  the  assessors  of  the  said  towns  of  Castleton  and  Southfield,  and  shall 
be  ascertained  from  the  last  assessment  rolls  of  said  towns ;  and  the  said  board 
shall  add  to  their  warrant,  for  collection  of  such  taxes,  such  amount  as  they  may 
deem  proper  for  fees  for  collection,  not  exceeding  five  per  cent  on  the  amount. 

§  6.  The  said  tax  shall  be  laid  and  collected  between  the  first  day  of  February 
and  November,  in  each  year.     [  As  amended  by  chap.  74  of  1856.  ] 

§  7.  The  town  superintendents  of  common  schools  of  the  towns  of  Castleton 
and  Southfield  shall  pay  over  to  the  board  of  education  all  the  public  moneys  to 
which  said  district  number  one  shall  be  entitled  for  school  purposes. 

§  8.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  call  an  annual  district  meeting,  at  such 
time  in  the  year  as  they  shall  think  proper,  and  submit  thereto  a  full  report,  in 
writing,  of  their  doings  as  such  board,  and  shall  state  therein  the  number  and 
condition  of  the  schools  in  said  district  under  their  charge,  and  the  number  of  the 
scholars  attending  the  same,  the  studies  pursued,  the  amount  of  moneys  received 
from  the  state,  as  well  as  the  amount  raised  in  the  district  for  school  purposes, 
and  the  expenditure  of  the  same,  and  generally  all  the  particulars  relating  to  the 
schools  in  said  district,  which  report,  if  said  board  think  proper,  may  be  pub- 
lished in  pamphlet  form,  or  in  some  newspaper  published  in  the  county. 

§  9.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  entire  control  of  the  district  library; 
they  may  employ  a  librarian,  make  such  additions  to  the  library  and  such  regu- 
lations in  relation  thereto  as  they  may  deem  necessary  or  proper. 

§  10.  A  school  for  colored  children  may  be  organized  and  be  supported  as  the 
other  schools  in  said  district  under  this  act. 

§  11.  The  said  board  of  education  may  call  special  meetings  of  said  district 
whenever  they  may  deem  it  necessary;  and  whenever  a  special  meeting  shall  be 
called,  notices  of  it  shall  be  posted  up  in  five  public  places  in  said  district,  at 
least  one  week  previous  to  said  meeting,  and  no  business  shall  be  transacted 
at  such  meeting  except  that  stated  in  the  notice  calling  the  same. 


CASTLETON.  375 

§12.  [Temporary,  authorizing  certain  taxes  for  the  completion  of  school- 
houses.     See  this  section  as  amended  by  ty  2,  chap.  74  of  1856.  ] 

§  13.  All  laws  and  parts  of  laws  inconsistent  with  this  act  are  hereby  repealed, 
so  far  as  they  relate  to  district  number  one,  in  the  towns  of  Castleton  and  South- 
field,  in  the  county  of  Richmond. 

§  14.  All  the  rights,  powers  and  duties  conferred  in  the  trustees  of  said  school 
district,  by  the  annual  meetings  held  therein  in  the  years  one  thousand  ei^ht 
hundred  and  fifty-one  and  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-two,  are  hereby 
transferred  to  said  board  of  education,  who  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered 
to  do  all  the  acts  that  the  said  trustees  were  required  to  do  by  the  proceedings 
of  said  annual  meetings. 

[Laws  of  1856,  chap.  74.] 

*  *  *  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  empowered  and  directed  to 
keep  the  said  school-houses  belonging  to  the  said  district,  together  with  the 
furniture,  library  and  scientific  apparatus,  insured  in  such  sum  as  they  may 
deem  to  be  the  true  value  thereof,  and  to  levy  and  collect  the  costs  and  expense 
of  the  same,  as  hereinbefore  provided. 

5.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to  pur- 
chase a  suitable  lot  of  ground,  as  a  site  upon  which  to  erect  a  school-house  for 
colored  children,  on  the  most  reasonable  terms  which  they  can,  and  to  pay  for 
the  same  out  of  the  moneys  now  in  their  hands  for  that  purpose ;  and  if  the  same 
shall  not  be  sufficient  to  pay  for  said  lot  and  erect  the  house  thereon,  the  said 
board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized,  empowered  and  directed  to  levy  and 
collect,  by  a  tax  upon  all  the  taxable  property  and  inhabitants  in  said  district, 
such  sum,  not  exceeding  three  hundred  dollars,  as  may  be  necessary  and  suffi- 
cient to  purchase  said  lot  and  erect  said  house. 

DISTRICTS  Nos.  2,  3,  5  and  7,  IN  CASTLETON. 
[  Laws  of  1855,  chap.  510.  ] 

Section  1.  The  trustees  of  each  of  the  school  districts,  two,  three,  five  and 
seven,  in  the  town  of  Castleton,  in  the  county  of  Richmond,  shall  annually,  at 
least  three  weeks  before  their  annual  meetings  or  three  weeks  before  a  special 
meeting  which  may  be  called  for  that  purpose,  in  their  respective  districts,  prepare 
an  estimate  of  the  amount  which  they  shall  deem  necessary  to  pay  the  debts  of 
their  districts  and  for  the  support  of  common  schools  therein  for  the  ensuing  year, 
exclusive  of  the  money  which  they  may  be  entitled  to  receive  from  the  town 
superintendent,  and  including  the  sum  required  for  building,  for  the  purchase  of 
necessary  furniture,  apparatus  and  books,  and  for  contingent  expenses,  and  shall 
cause  notice  thereof  to  be  posted  for  two  weeks  previous  to  said  meeting,  in  at 
least  five  of  the  most  public  places  in  the  district.  And  they  shall  present  such 
estimate  at  such  meeting,  when  the  inhabitants  so  assembled  shall  vote  thereon 
for  each  item  separately,  and  the  same,  or  so  much  thereof  as  shall  be  approved 
by  a  majority  of  such  inhabitants,  shall  be  levied  and  raised  by  tax  on  such 
district,  as  now  prescribed  by  law  for  raising  school  district  taxes. 

§•  2.  When  the  trustees  shall  have  completed  any  tax  list,  they  shall  annex  to 
such  tax  list  a  warrant,  directed  to  the  collector  of  the  district,  for  the  collection 
of  the  sums  of  money  in  such  list  mentioned,  returnable  in  thirty  days,  and  take 
from  such  collector  approved  security  for  the  performance  of  his  duty.  Such 
warrant  may  be  renewed  from  time  to  time,  as  now  provided  by  law  for  the 
collection  of  district  taxes.  The  money  so  collected  shall  be  paid  to  said  trustees, 
and  by  them  appropriated  to  the  purpose  for  which  the  same  was  voted,  unless 
otherwise  directed  by  a  vote  of  the  inhabitants  at  their  annual  district  meeting 
or  a  special  meeting  called  for  the  purpose. 

§  3.  The  tax  hereby  imposed  shall  be  a  lien  upon  the  lands  taxed,  to  be  enforced 
and  collected  by  sale,  in  the  manner  that  county  taxes  are  collected,  upon  a 
return  to  be  made  by  said  collector  to  the  treasurer  of  the  county  of  all  unpaid 
taxes  iu  said  district. 


376  CHERRY  VALLEY— CLYDE  HIGH  SCHOOL 

DISTRICT  No.  3,  IN  CHERRY  VALLEY. 
[  Laws  of  1853,  chap.  171.  J 

§  1.  School  district  number  three,  in  the  town  of  Cherry  Valley,  in  Otsego 
county,  shall  be  free  to  all  children  between  the  agea  of  four  and  twenty-one 
years  residing  in  said  district. 

§  2.  The  trustees  of  said  district  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  to  be  levied  equally  upon  all  the  real  and 
personal  property  in  said  school  districts  which  shall  be  liable  for  ordinary  school 
district  taxes,  such  sum  or  sums  of  money,  not  exceeding  three  hundred  dollars 
in  any  one  year,  as  the  trustees  of  said  district  may  deem  necessary  for  the  pay- 
ment of  teachers'  wages,  after  applying  all  other  moneys  belonging  to  said  district 
which  may  be  applicable  to  the  payment  of  the  wages  of  teachers. 


CLYDE  HIGH  SCHOOL. 
[Laws  of  1834,  chap.  175,  as  amended  by  chap.  268,  Laws  of  1842.  ] 

Section  1  School  district  number  seventeen,  in  the  town  of  Galen,  in  the  county 
of  Wayne,  shall  form  a  permanent  school  district,  not  subject  to  alteration  by  the 
town  superintendent  of  common  schools  of  the  said  town  of  Galen,  and  shall 
hereafter  be  known  by  the  name  of  "  The  Clyde  High  School." 

§  2.  The  trustees  of  the  Clyde  High  School  shall  be  seven  in  number;  and 
the  first  trustees  shall  be  George  Burrell,  John  Condit,  Sylvester  Clark,  Cyrus 
Smith,  Isaac  Lewis,  William  S.  Stow  and  Calvin  D.  Tompkins ;  and  shall  hold 
their  offices  until  the  first  annual  meeting  of  said  permanent  school  district,  and 
until  others  are  chosen. 

§  3.  Said  trustees  are  authorized  to  receive  gifts,  grants  and  donations  towards 
defraying  the  expenses  of  purchasing  a  site  and  building  a  suitable  school-house 
for  said  high  school. 

§  4.  Said  trustees,  on  receiving  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars,  or  having  the 
said  sum  secured  to  be  paid  to  them  by  subscription  or  otherwise,  shall  have  power 
to  levy  and  cause  to  be  raised  by  tax,  upon  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  said  perma- 
nent school  district,  a  like  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars;  but  no  such  tax  shall  be 
levied  until  said  trustees  shall  have  called  a  special  meeting  of  the  taxable  inhabi- 
tants of  said  permanent  school  district,  in  manner  now  provided  by  law  for 
calling  special  school  district  meetings. 

§  5.  Said  trustees  shall  report  in  writing  to  said  meeting  the  amount  of 
moneys  received  by  them,  the  sum  or  sums  secured  to  be  paid  to  them,  and  the 
manner  in  which  it  is  secured ;  and  if  the  sum  of  one  thousand  dollars  appears  to 
be  paid  or  is  secured  to  be  paid  to  said  trustees,  said  meeting  shall  proceed  to 
elect  a  clerk  and  collector  for  said  high  school,  who  shall  hold  their  offices  until 
the  first  annual  meeting  of  said  permanent  school  district,  and  until  others  are 
chosen. 

§  6.  The  trustees  hereby  appointed,  and  clerk  and  collector  hereby  directed  to 
be  chosen,  shall  be  subject  to  the  same  penalties,  and  shall  have  the  same  powers 
and  perform  the  same  duties,  as  like  officers  directed  to  be  chosen  by  chapter 
fifteen,  title  second  and  article  fifth  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  and  all  subsequent 
elections  shall  be  held  under  that  act. 

§  7.  The  trustees  of  said  high  school  shall  select  a  suitable  site  in  the  village 
of  Clyde  for  the  erection  of  their  school-house,  and  shall  contract  for  and  pur- 
chase the  same,  and  thereon  erect  a  school-house  of  sufficient  size  to  accommo- 
date such  children  as  may  be  required  to  be  educated  in  said  permanent  school 
district,  and  shall  furnish  the  necessary  furniture  and  fixtures  for  the  same. 


COIIOES.  377 

§  8.  School  districts  fourteen  and  seventeen,  or  either  of  them,  may  sell  their 
district  property,  and  pay  the  amount  of  money  arising  from  such  sale  or  sales  to 
the  trustees  of  the  Clyde  High  School. 

§  9.  Said  trustees  on  receiving  such  moneys,  shall,  if  required  by  either  dis- 
trict, deduct  the  amount  from  that  part  of  the  tax  hereby  directed  to  be  imposed 
on  the  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  individual  district  paying  the  same. 

§  10.  The  school  money,  which  school  districts  number  fourteen  and  seventeen 
shall  from  time  to  time  bo  entitled  to  receive  from  the  commissioners  of  common 
schools  in  the  town  of  Galen,  shall  be  paid  to  the  trustees  of  the  Clyde  High 
School,  who  shall  be  required  to  report  to  said  commissioners  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  other  school  districts  are  by  law  required  to  report. 

§  11.  The  trustees  receiving  such  moneys  shall  give  their  receipt  for  the  same, 
and  shall  apply  the  money  received  exclusively  to  the  payment  of  the  teachers 
employed  by  them ;  and  it  may  be  applied  in  such  manner  as  to  render  the  tuition 
of  such  poor  children  in  said  district  as  they  may  deem  proper,  gratuitous. 

§  12.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of  the  said  high  school  to  make  an 
annual  report,  to  the  superintendent  of  common  schools,  of  the  state  and  condition 
of  the  said  school. 

§  13.  The  trustees  shall  have  the  general  superintendence  of  all  schools  taught 
in  said  school-house,  and  shall  employ  as  many  teachers  and  assistants  as  they 
shall  deem  necessary,  and  shall  direct  the  course  of  instruction,  and  regulate  all 
the  internal  concerns  of  said  school.  [§  2,  act.of  1812.]  The  trustees  of  said 
Clyde  High  School  may  from  time  to  time  rent  or  lease,  for  scholastic  purposes, 
such  rooms  or  apartment  in  their  school-house  as  in  their  judgment  may  not  be 
required  for  the  use  of  schools  therein  established  by  them. 


COHOES. 
[  Laws  of  1855,  chap.  352.] 

§  50.  The  common  schools  in  said  village  shall  be  free  to  all  children,  between 
the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one  years,  residing  therein. 

§  51.  There  shall  be  erected  in  each  ward  one  or  more  school-houses  belonging 
to  said  village. 

§  52.  The  title  of  the  school-houses,  lots,  furniture,  books,  libraries  and 
apparatus,  and  all  other  school  property  which  has  been  heretofore  or  may  be 
hereafter  acquired,  either  as  school  districts  or  by  the  village  and  within  the 
bounds  thereof,  shall  be  vested  in  the  village  of  Cohoes,  and  while  the  same  are 
used  for  school  purposes  they  shall  not  be  levied  upon  or  sold  by  virtue  of  any 
warrant  or  execution,  nor  be  subject  to  taxation  ;  and  the  said  village  may  take, 
hold  and  dispose  of,  in  its  corporate  capacity,  any  real  or  personal  property 
transferred  to  it  by  gift,  grant,  bequest  or  devise  for  the  use  of  the  common 
schools  in  said  village. 

§  53.  The  trustees  of  the  village  may,  upon  the  recommdation  of  the  board  of 
education,  as  hereinafter  mentioned,  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites, 
or  any  other  school  property  now  or  hereafter  belonging  to  said  village,  provided 
that  the  proceeds  of  such  sale  or  sales  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  the  village 
and  remain  in  his  hands  as  a  fund  for  the  erection  of  school-houses,  unless  the 
same  shall  have  been  otherwise  appropriated  by  a  vote  of  the  inhabitants  entitled 
to  vote  for  raising  taxes  in  said  village. 

§  54.  The  school  commissioners  shall  constitute  and  be  styled  the  "  Board  of 
Education  of  the  village  of  Cohoes,"  which  shall  be  a  corporate  body  in  relation 
to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  upon  them  by  this  act. 

§  55.  The  members  of  the  board  of  education  shall  not  receive  any  compensa- 
tion for  their  services,  except,  that  the  chairman  thereof  may  be  entitled  to  receive 
at  and  after  the  rale  of  one  dollar  and  fifty  cents  per  day  for  the  time  he  is 
actually  employed  (to  be  verified  by  his  affidavit),  but  in  no  case  shall  the  com- 
pensation so  paid  exceed  the  sum  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  per  annum. 

[Code.]  48 


378  COIIOES. 

§  56.  Any  member  of  the  board  of  education  in  said  village  may  be  removed 
from  office,  for  official  misconduct  or  neglect  of  duty,  by  the  trustees  of  said 
\illage;  but  a  written  copy  of  the  charges  against  said  trustee  shall  he  served 
upon  him,  and  he  shall  be  allowed  an  opportunity  to  refute  such  charge  of 
misconduct  or  neglect  of  duty  before  removed. 

§  57.  The  chairman  of  the  board  of  education  shall  see  that  the  school-houses, 
buildings,  or  any  other  school  property  belonging  to  said  village,  is  not  unnecessa- 
rily injured  or  destroyed.  He  shall  visit  each  of  the  schools  in  said  village  at 
least  once  in  three  months,  and  shall  perform  such  other  duties  as  may  be  required 
of  liim  by  said  board  of  education;  or  otherwise  he  shall,  in  connection  with 
any  three  or  more  members  of  the  board  of  education,  or,  if  he  may  deem  it 
advisable,  request  the  attendance  of  any  one  or  more  of  the  inhabitants  of  said 
village  whom  he  may  think  competent  to  assist  him  for  that  purpose,  examine 
and  license  all  school  teachers  in  said  village. 

§  58.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  be  trustees  of  the  school  library  or 
libraries  in  said  village;  and  all  the  provisions  of  law,  which  now  are  or  mr.y 
hereafter  be  enacted  relative  to  school  district  libraries,  shall  apply  to  said  board 
of  education. 

§  59.  The  clerk  of  the  village  shall  be  clerk  of  the  board  of  education,  and 
librarian;  and,  as  such  librarian,  shall  perform  all  the  duties  which  are  or  may 
be  required  by  the  general  school  laws.  As  clerk  of  the  board  of  education,  he 
shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of  the  board,  and  perform  such  other 
duties  as  the  board  may  prescribe ;  and  the  said  record,  or  a  transcript  thereof, 
certified  by  the  president  and  clerk,  shall  be  received  in  all  courts  as  presumptive 
evidence  of  the  facts  therein  set  forth ;  and  such  records,  and  all  the  books, 
accounts,  vouchers  and  papers  of  said  board  shall  at  all  times  be  subject  to  the 
inspection  of  the  trustees  of  the  village  or  any  committee  thereof.  The  trustees 
may  prescribe  the  compensation  for  such  services,  not  exceeding  one  hundred 
and  fifty  dollars. 

§  60.  The  said  board  of  education  may  allow  the  children  of  persons  not 
resident  within  said  village  to  attend  any  of  the  schools  therein  under  their  custody 
or  control,  upon  such  terms  as  they  shall  prescribe  in  their  by-laws  or  resolutions 
for  the  government  and  management  of  said  schools. 

§  61.  The  said  board  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty : 

1.  To  organize  and  establish  in  said  village  so  many  and  such  schools  as  they 
shall  deem  requisite  and  expedient,  and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same,  in  their 
discretion ; 

2  To  hire  school-houses  and  rooms  for  the  purposes  of  said  school,  when 
necessary ; 

3.  To  alter,  repair  and  improve  school-houses  belonging  to  the  village,  and 
their  appurtenances;  , 

4.  To  purchase  books  for  indigent  pupils,  and  to  purchase  and  repair  furniture, 
school  apparatus  and  other  necessary  articles,  including  libraries  ; 

5.  To  have  the  custody,  control  and  safe  keeping  (except  as  herein  otherwise 
provided)  of  the  school-house  buildings,  lots  or  any  other  school  property 
belonging  to  said  village  of  Cohoes,  and  exercise  the  powers  and  discharge  the 
duties,  in  respect  to  said  schools,  both  of  trustees  of  school  districts  and  of 
town  superintendent  of  common  schools ; 

6.  To  contract  with  and  employ  all  teachers  in  said  schools,  and  at  their  plea- 
sure to  remove  them ; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  public  money  appropriated  and 
provided  by  law  for  that  purpose,  so  far  as  the  same  shall  be  sufficient,  and  to 
pay  the  balance  of  such  wages  from  the  money  authorized  to  be  raised  for  that 
purpose  by  section  64  of  this  act ; 

8.  To  defray  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  the  board,  including  the 
compensation  of  the  chairman  of  the  board,  and  the  clerk  of  the  village  for  his 
services  as  clerk  of  the  board  of  education  and  librarian,  under  the  provisions  of 
this  act ;  but  the  amount  of  such  expenses  and  compensation  shall  be  first  audited 
and  allowed  by  the  trustees  of  said  village ; 


COHOES.  379 

9.  To  have  in  all  respects,  unless  otherwise  provided  in  this  act,  the  superin- 
tendence, supervision  and  management  of  the  schools  in  said  village,  and  from 
time  to  time  may  adopt,  alter,  modify  and  repeal  all  rules  and  regulations  for 
their  organization,  government  and  instruction,  as  they  may  deem  expedient  for 

the  reception  of  pupils,  and  their  transfer  from  one  school  to  another,  and  gene- 
rally for  the  promotion  of  good  order  in  said  schools ; 

10.  To  report  to  the  village  trustees,  whenever,  in  their  opinion,  it  may  he 
advisable  to  sell  any  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  other  school  property  belong- 
ing to  the  village; 

11.  To  cause  an  enumeration  of  all  the  children  within  said  village,  between 
the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one  years,  to  be  made  between  the  first  and  fifteenth 
day  of  January  in  each  year;  and  the  chairman  shall  report  the  number  of  such 
children,  at  the  time  and  in  the  manner  required  by  law  of  town  superintendents 
of  schools ; 

12.  To  make  and  transmit,  between  the  first  days  of  July  and  August  in  each 
year,  to  the  county  clerk  of  Albany  county,  a  like  report  in  all  respects,  as  near 
as  practicable,  as  is  by  law  required  by  town  superintendents  of  schools,  and  to 
furnish  such  information,  relating  to  the  schools  in  said  village,  as  may  from  time 
to  time  be  required  by  the  trustees  thereof  or  by  the  State  Superintendent  of 
Public  Instruction ; 

§  62.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  education,  within  thirty  days,  and 
not  less  than  fifteen  days,  before  the  annual  election  in  each  year,  to  make  a 
report  to  the  village  trustees,  showing: 

1.  The  number  of  scholars  between  the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one  years, 
residing  in  said  village,  who  have  attended  the  free  schools  therein  during  the 
preceding  year,  and  the  number  attending  each  school,  also  the  number  under 
four  years  of  age  attending  said  schools ; 

2.  The  number' of  scholars  not  residing  in  said  village,  but  have  attended  the 
common  schools  therein  during  the  same  time  ; 

3.  The  amount  of  public  moneys  received  by  the  village  treasurer  applicable 
to  teachers'  wages,  and  the  amount  applicable  to  school  libraries ; 

4.  The  amount  of  moneys  raised  by  the  village  trustees  under  section  sixty-four 
of  this  act,  and  the  portions  thereof  appropriated  to  the  respective  funds  ; 

5.  The  moneys  received  from  the  sale  of  village  property ; 

6.  All  other  sums  received  by  the  treasurer  and  appropriated  to  the  purposes 
of  the  common  schools  ; 

7.  The  manner  and  purposes  for  which  such  sums  of  money  shall  have  been 
expended,  specifying  the  amount  paid  under  each  head  of  expenditure  ; 

8.  An  estimate  of  all  sums  necessary  and  deemed  desirable  by  said  board  to 
be  raised,  for  all  school  purposes  for  the  then  present  year,  under  the  provisions 
of  this  act,  except  the  amount  to  be  raised  for  the  contingent  fund,  which  estimate 
ehall  state  the  specific  sum  necessary  to  be  raised  for  each  item  therein. 

§  63.  The  village  trustees  shall  cause  the  report  and  estimate,  required  by  the 
last  preceding  section,  to  be  published  in  one  or  more  of  the  papers  published  in 
said  village  for  two  weeks  next  preceding  the  annual  election. 

§  64.  The  trustees  of  said  village  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  to  be  levied  equally  upon  all  the  real  and 
personal  property  in  said  village  which  shall  be  liable  for  the  ordinary  village 
taxes,  such  sum  or  sums  of  money  as  the  board  of  education  shall  deem  necessary 
for  any  or  all  of  the  following  purposes : 

1.  To  build,  purchase  or  lease  school-houses,  or  purchase,  lease  and  improve 
sites  therefor ;  but  no  greater  sum  than  fifteen  hundred  dollars  shall  be  appropri- 
ated for  that  object  in  any  one  year  ; 

2.  To  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses  and  their  out-houses 
and  appurtenances ;  but  no  greater  sum  than  fifty  dollars  shall  be  appropriated 
for  that  object  in  any  one  year  for  any  one  school-house; 

3.  To  raise  a  sura^  which  shall  not  exceed  fifty  dollars  in  any  one  year,  to  pur- 
chase and  repair  school  apparatus,  books  and  furniture,  including  the  school 
library  or  libraries  in  said  village; 


380  COHOES. 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  to  purchase  stoves  and  heaters  and  repair  the  same ; 

5.  To  pay  the  wages  of  teachers  which  may  be  due  after  the  application  of  the 
public  school  moneys,  and  all  other  moneys  received  by  said  board  which  may 
by  law  be  appropriated  and  provided  for  that  purpose ;  but  in  no  case  shall  the 
moneys  so  raised  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  be  less  than  fifty-five  cents 
nor  over  one  dollar  per  year  for  each  child  in  said  village  between  the  age  of  four 
and  twenty-one  years. 

§  65.  The  trustees  of  said  village  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty,  from  time  to  time,  and  at  the  same  time  the  other  village  taxes  are  levied 
and  collected,  to  levy  and  raise  a  tax  of  fifty  cents  from  each  male  inhabitant  of 
the  age  of  twenty-one  years  residing  in  said  village,  and  the  money  so  raised 
shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  the  village  as  a  contingent  fund  for  the  use  of  the 
common  or  free  schools  of  said  village. 

§  66.  Whenever  any  money  is  raised  for  school  purposes  under  this  act,  for 
any  specific  fund,  it  shall  not  be  applied  to  any  other  fund  or  purpose  whatever, 
except  by  a  vote  of  the  electors  entitled  to  vote  for  raising  such  taxes  under  the 
provisions  of  this  act. 

§  67.  The  estimate  of  the  sums,  recommended  by  the  board  of  education  as 
necessary  to  be  raised  for  all  school  purposes  mentioned  in  this  act,  shall  be  sub- 
mitted at  the  next  annual  village  meeting  by  the  village  trustees,  and  passed  upon, 
item  to  item,  by  the  voters  then  present  entitled  to  vote  for  raising  taxes  for  school 
purposes,  and  adopted  or  rejected  wholly  or  in  part;  the  vote  shall  be  taken  by 
ayes  and  nays,  or  by  ballot,  if  ordered  by  a  majority  of  the  voters  entitled  to  vote 
for  such  taxes.  All  persons  who  have  paid  the  school  tax,  in  section  sixty-five 
mentioned,  shall  have  the  privilege  of  voting  for  raising  money  for  school 
purposes. 

§  68.  [  Repealed  by  chap.  180  of  1856,  Nos.  30  and  31,  ante.  ] 

§  69.  All  moneys  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act,  or  received  by  the  said  village 
for  or  on  account  of  common  schools,  shall  be  deposited  with  the  treasurer  of 
said  village,  to  the  credit  of  the  respective  funds  under  the  control  of  said  board 
of  education,  as  provided  by  law,  and  shall  be  drawn  out  in  pursuance  of  a  reso- 
lution of  the  said  board,  by  drafts  drawn  by  the  chairman,  and  countersigned  by 
the  clerk  of  said  board,  payable  to  the  order  of  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to 
receive  such  moneys;  and  all  accounts  so  paid  shall  be  accompanied  by  the  affi- 
davit of  the  owner  thereof,  setting  forth  that  the  claims  are  reasonable,  and  that 
all  the  articles  named  were  furnished  by  the  direction  of  the  legally  appointed 
officers. 

§  70.  The  said  board  of  education,  in  all  their  expenditures  and  contracts,  shall 
have  reference  to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  subject  to  their  order  for 
any  specific  object  during  the  then  current  year,  and  not  to  exceed  the  amount  so 
provided. 

§  71.  The  board  of  trustees  of  said  village  shall  have  the  power  to  pass  such 
ordinances  and  regulations  as  the  said  board  of  education  may  report  as  necessary 
and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and  preservation  of  the  school- 
houses,  lots,  sites,  appurtenances  and  appendages,  libraries  and  all  other  school 
property  belonging  to  or  connected  with  the  schools  of  said  village,  and  to  impose 
proper  penalties  for  the  violation  thereof,  subject  to  the  subscriptions  and  limita- 
tions contained  in  this  act ;  and  all  such  penalties  shall  be  collected  in  the  same 
manner  that  the  penalties  for  the  violation  of  the  village  ordinances  are  by  law 
collected,  and  when  collected  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  the  village,  and 
by  him  placed  to  the  credit  of  the  contingent  fund. 


EASTCHESTER.  381 

DISTRICT  No.  4  — EASTCHESTER,  WESTCHESTER  COUNTY. 
[  Laws  of  1853,  chap.  334.  ] 

Section  1.  School  district  number  four,  in  the  town  of  Eastchester,  shall  form 
a  permanent  school  district,  and  shall  not  be  subject  to  alteration  by  the  town 
superintendent  of  common  schools  of  said  town. 

§  2.  The  said  district  shall  be  under  the  direction  of  a  board,  to  be  styled  "  The 
Board  of  Education  of  school  district  number  four,  in  the  town  of  Eastchester," 
which  shall  be  a  corporate  body,  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred 
upon  them  by  this  act ;  said  board  to  consist  of  nine  members,  five  of  whom  shall 
constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business. 

§  3.  The  trustees  of  said  district  shall,  within  thirty  days  after  the  passage  of 
this  act,  call  a  special  meeting  of  the  district,  for  the  election  of  school  officers, 
by  giving  notice  as  provided  by  law.  There  shall  be  elected  at  such  meeting 
three  members  of  said  board  of  education,  to  serve  until  the  first  Monday  in 
October,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-three ;  three  until  the  first  Monday  in  Octo- 
ber, eighteen-hundred  and  fifty-four  ;  and  three  until  the  first  Monday  in  October, 
eighteen  hundred  fifty-five.  There  shall  also  be  elected  at  said  meeting  a  district 
treasurer,  collector,  clerk  and  a  librarian,  each  of  whom  shall  serve  until  the  first 
Monday  in  October,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-three.  After  said  election,  the 
office  of  school  trustee  in  said  district  shall  be  abolished. 

§  4.  The  annual  meeting  of  the  inhabitants  of  said  district  shall  be  held  on  the 
first  Monday  of  October  in  each  year. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  may  call  special  meetings  of  said  district 
whenever  they  may  deem  it  necessary,  or  whenever  petitioned  by  twenty-five 
taxable  inhabitants  of  said  district;  they  shall  give  notice  of  the  same  by  posting 
up  a  written  or  printed  notice  thereof  in  at  least  five  public  places  in  said  district, 
at  least  one  week  previous  to  the  time  fixed  for  such  meeting,  which  notice  shall 
slate  the  time  and  place  of  holding  such  meeting  and  the  purpose  for  which  the 
same  is  called ;  and  no  business  shall  be  transacted  at  any  such  meeting  except 
that  stated  in  the  notice  calling  the  same. 

§  6.  At  the  annual  meeting  of  said  district,  in  each  year,  there  shall  be  elected 
three  members  of  said  board  of  education,  who  shall  be  residents  of  said  district, 
and  shall  hold  office  for  three  years ;  there  shall  also  be  elected  at  said  meeting  a 
district  treasurer,  collector,  clerk  and  a  librarian,  who  shall  hold  office  for  one 
year;  which  election  shall  be  by  ballot,  and  shall  be  conducted  in  the  same  man- 
ner as  the  annual  election  for  town  officers.  Said  board  of  education  shall  appoint 
three  inspectors,  at  least  thirty  days  preceding  such  election. 

§  7.  Every  resignation  of  officers  appointed  or  elected  under  this  act  shall  be 
made  to  the  board  of  education ;  and  such  resignation  shall  have  no  force  or 
effect,  nor  in  any  degree  excuse  such  officer  from  the  discharge  of  his  duties, 
until  the  same  be  accepted  and  approved  by  a  resolution  of  said  board. 

§  8.  Any  such  officer  may  be  removed  from  office,  for  any  official  misconduct 
or  nealect  of  official  duty,  by  a  resolution  of  said  board,  two-thirds  of  the  mem- 
bers thereof  concurring ;  but  a  written  copy  of  the  charges  against  such  officer 
shall  be  served  upon  him,  and  opportunity  shall  be  given  to  every  such  officer  to 
be  heard  in  his  defence,  before  any  such  resolution  shall  be  adopted. 

§  9.  Every  person  appointed  or  elected  to  any  office  mentioned  in  this  act  (and 
not  having  refused  to  accept),  who  shall  neglect  to  discharge  the  duties  of  such 
office,  shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  twenty  dollars  to  said  board  of  education.  It  shall 
be  the  duty  of  such  board  of  education  forthwith  to  prosecute  for  all  forfeitures 
and  penalties  under  this  act.  and  when  recovered  to  apply  the  same  to  the  pur- 
poses of  education  in  said  district.  All  officers  mentioned  in  this  act  shall  be 
deemed  public  officers,  within  the  intent  and  meaning  of  section  thirty-eight  of 
title  six  of  chapter  one,  part  four  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  and,  as  such,  liable  to 
the  penalties  therein  prescribed,  in  addition  to  the  penalties  in  this  section. 


382  EASTCHESTER. 

§  10.  Every  officer  in  this  act  mentioned,  having  in  his  possession,  custody, 
care,  charge  or  control,  any  property  belonging  to  said  district,  or  an}7  money 
raised  by  the  provisions  of  this  act  or  provided  by  law  for  the  purposes  of  educa- 
tion in  said  district,  shall,  at  the  expiration  of  his  term,  or  whenever  such  officer 
shall  resign,  be  removed  from  office,  cease  to  act,  or  his  office  be  otherwise  vacated, 
transfer  all  such  property  and  pay  over  all  such  money  to  the  board  of  education. 

§  11.  The  said  board  of  education  shall,  at  their  first  annual  meeting,  choose 
one  of  their  number  for  president  and  one  for  secretary  of  said  board,  who  shall 
hold  office  for  one  year.  In  the  absence  of  the  president  or  secretary  at  any 
regular  meeting  of  the  board,  a  president  or  secretary  may  be  appointed  for  the 
time  being.  The  district  treasurer  and  collector  shall,  within  ten  days  after 
receiving  notice  in  writing  of  their  election,  execute  and  deliver  to  the  said  board 
of  education  a  bond,  in  such  penalty  and  with  such  sureties  as  the  said  board 
may  deem  necessary,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  their  respective 
duties.  In  case  such  bond  shall  not  be  given  within  ten  days  after  receiving  such 
notice,  such  office  shall  thereby  become  vacated,  and  the  said  board  may  make 
appointment  to  fill  such  vacancy. 

§  12.  The  said  board  cf  education  may  make  all  necessary  by-laws  for  their 
own  government.  Vacancies  in  the  board,  occurring  by  resignation  or  any  other 
cause,  may  be  filled  by  the  board  until  the  next  annual  election,  when  such 
vacancies  shall  be  filled  in  the  same  manner  as  those  caused  by  expiration  of  term 
of  office. 

The  said  board  shall  meet  for  the  transaction  of  business  as  often  as  once  in 
each  month,  and  may  adjourn  for  any  shorter  time.  Special  meetings  may  be 
called  by  the  president,  or,  in  his  absence  or  inability  to  act,  by  the  secretary  or 
any  other  member  of  the  board,  as  often  as  necessary,  by  giving  personal  notice 
to  each  member  thereof,  or  causing  a  written  or  printed  notice  to  be  left  at  his 
last  place  of  residence  at  least  twenty-four  hours  before  the  hour  of  meeting;  and 
if  any  member  of  the  said  board  refuses  or  neglects  to  attend  any  three  successive 
stated  meetings  of  the  board,  and  if  no  satisfactory  cause  of  his  non-attendance 
be  shown,  the  board  may  declare  his  office  vacant. 

No  member  of  said  board  shall  receive  any  pay  or  compensation  for  his  services 

It  shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  member  of  said  board  to  become  a  contractor  foi 
building  or  making  any  improvement  or  repairs  authorized  by  this  act,  or  be  in 
any  manner  directly  or  indirectly  interested,  either  as  principal,  partner  or  surety, 
in  any  such  contract.  All  contracts  made  in  violation  of  this  provision  shall  be 
absolutely  void,  and  the  person  so  violating  shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars. 

§  13.  The  title  to  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  books,  apparatus  and 
appurtenances  in  this  act  mentioned,  and  all  other  school  property  in  the  said 
district,  shall  be  vested  in  said  board  of  education ;  and  the  same,  while  used  for 
or  appropriated  to  school  purposes,  shall  be  exempt  from  all  taxes  and  assess- 
ments, and  shall  not  be  liable  to  be  levied  upon  and  sold  by  virtue  of  any  warrant 
or  execution.  And  the  said  board  of  education,  in  its  corporate  capacity,  may 
take,  hold  and  dispose  of  any  real  or  personal  estate,  transferred  to  it  by  gift 
grant,  bequest  or  devise,  for  the  use  of  the  common  schools  in  the  said  district, 
or  any  or  either  of  them,  or  to  mortgage  or  encumber  the  same  for  school  purposes 
with  the  consent  of  the  district.  They  shall  have  aud  possess,  within  the  said 
district,  all  the  rights,  power  and  authority  of  town  superintendent  of  common 
schools.  They  shall  have  the  entire  control  and  management  of  all  the  common 
schools  within  the  said  district  and  all  the  property  belonging  to  the  same.  They 
shall  require  one  of  the  members  of  said  board  to  visit  each  school  in  said  district 
at  least  once  in  each  week,  to  render  such  assistance  to  the  teachers  and  advit  e 
to  the  pupils  as  may  be  necessary,  and  to  see  that  the  regulations  are  rigidly 
adhered  to. 

£  14.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  entire  control  and  charge  of  the 
district  school  library  in  said  district.  They  may  make  such  additions  to  the 
library  and  such  regulations  in  relation  thereto  as  they  shall  deem  necessary. 

§  15.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  and  are  hereby  directed  to 
levy  and  collect  by  tax,  in  each  year,  upon  all  the  taxable  property  and  inhabi- 


EASTCIIESTEK.  383 

tants  in  said  district,  as  the  same  shall  he  assessed  hy  the  assessors  of  the  town  m 
vhirh  the  said  district  is  situated,  such  sum  as  shall  be  authorized  by  a  majority 
of  the  voters  at  any  special  or  annual  meeting  of  the  district,  for  the  purposes 
specified  in  sections  sixteen  and  eighteen;  and  the  said  board  shall  add  to  their 
warrant  for  collection  of  taxes  such  amount  as  they  may  deem  proper  for  fees  for 
collection,  not  exceeding  live  per  cent  on  the  amount  to  be  collected.  Said  board 
shall  have  power  to  make  all  warrants,  for  the  collection  of  the  taxes  to  be  raised 
by  them,  returnable  at  sixty  or  ninety  days,  in  their  discretion,  and  to  renew  the 
same  whenever  it  shall  become  necessary. 

In  case  it  shall  appear  that  the  assessment  roll  does  not  include  all  the  taxable 
property  of  such  district,  the  property  omitted  shall  be  assessed  by  the  said  board, 
in  the  mode  requried  by  law,  and  added  thereto. 

§16.  When,  in  the  opinion  of  the  said  board,  it  becomes  necessary  to  build  an 
additional  school-house  or  houses  in  the  district,  or  to  enlarge  those  already  built, 
they  shall  submit  the  plans  and  estimated  cost  of  such  building,  and  furnishing 
the  same,  to  the  electors  of  said  district  at  a  special  meeting  called* for  that  pur- 
pose ;  and  if  a  majority  of  such  electors  present  shall  vote  in  favor  of  the  same, 
the  said  board  may  proceed  to  carry  the  same  into  full  effect. 

tj  17.  Whenever,  in  the  opinion  of  the  board,  it  may  be  advisable  to  sell  or  ex- 
change any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  any  of  the  school  property  now 
or  hereafter  belonging  to  the  district,  they  shall  report  the  same  to  the  electors 
of  said  district  at  a  special  meeting  called  for  that  purpose,  and,  with  the  consent 
of  a  majority  of  the  electors  present  at  said  meeting,  may  sell  and  dispose  of  such 
school-houses,  lots  or  sites  to  the  best  possible  advantage. 

§  18.  Said  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  he  their  duty,  out 
of  the  funds  collected  and  paid  to  them,  as  provided  in  sections  fifteen  and 
twenty-two  of  this  act : 

1.  To  purchase  or  lease  and  improve  sites  for  school-houses; 

2.  To  build,  purchase,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses, 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances,  so  as  to  afford  ample  accommodation  to 
educate  all  the  children  of  the  said  district; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages ; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  several  schools 
and  of  the  board  of  education ; 

5.  To  pay  the  wages  of  the  teachers  employed  by  them  ; 

6.  To  defray  the  expenses  of  insuring  all  the  school  property  of  said  district. 

§  19.  The  public  schools  in  the  district  shall  be  free  to  all  children  residing  in 
the  district.  But  the  board  of  education  may  permit  children  of  persons  not 
resident  within  said  district  to  attend  said  schools,  on  such  terms  as  they  shall 
prescribe;  the  said  board  may,  in  the  name  of  said  district,  sue  for  and  recover 
of  the  father  or  mother,  master  or  mistress,  or  any  person  under  whose  charge 
such  child  or  children  may  be,  all  such  sums  as  shall  be  so  prescribed,  with 
costs  of  suit. 

§  20.  All  moneys  to  be  received  by  virtue  of  this  act,  and  all  moneys  by  law 
appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  district,  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer,  who, 
together  with  the  sureties  upon  the  official  bond,  shall  be  accountable  therefor  to 
sa?d  board  of  education.  Said  treasurer  shall  not  pay  out  any  of  such  moneys, 
except  by  resolution  of  said  board,  and  upon  an  order  drawn  hy  the  president  and 
certified  by  the  secretary  to  be  so  drawn  in  pursuance  of  such  resolution. 

§  21.  The  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  of  the  town  of  Eastchester 
shall  pay  over  to  the  treasurer  all  the  public  moneys  to  which  said  district  num- 
ber four  may  be  entitled. 

§  22.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  prepare  and  submit,  at  each  annual 
meeting  of  the  district,  an  estimate  of  the  amount  necessary  to  be  raised  for  de- 
fraying" the  expenses  of  the  district  for  the  ensuing  year,  speciying  the  purposes 
for  which  the  same  is  to  be  expended. 

§  23.  The  said  board  of  education  shall,  at  the  annual  district  meeting,  submit  a 
full  report  in  writing  of  their  doings  as  such  board,  and  shall  state  therein  the 


384  FLUSHING. 

number  and  condition  of  the  schools  in  said  district  under  their  charge,  and  the 
number  of  scholars  attending  the  same,  the  studies  pursued,  the  amount  of  moneys 
received  from  the  state  and  from  other  sources,  as  well  as  the  amount  raised  in 
the  district  for  school  purposes,  the  expenditures  of  the  same,  and  all  the  particu- 
lars in  detail  relating  to  the  schools  in  said  district ;  which  report  may,  if  the 
board  think  proper,  be  printed  in  pamphlet  form,  or  in  some  newspaper  published 
in  the  county. 

§  24.  All  laws  and  parts  of  laws  inconsistent  with  this  act  are  hereby  repealed, 
so  far  as  relates  to  district  number  four  in  the  town  of  Eastchester. 


DISTRIICT  No.  5,  IN  THE  TOWN  OF  FLUSHING. 
[Laws  of  1848,  chap.  81,  as  amended  by  chap.  117  of  1849,  and  284  of  1854.] 

Section  1.  School  district  number  five,  in  the  town  of  Flushing,  in  the  county 
of  Queens,  shall  form  a  permanent  school  district,  and  shall  not  be  subject  to 
alteration  by  the  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  for  the  town  in  which 
said  district  is  situated. 

§  2.  The  said  district  shall  be  under  the  direction  of  a  board,  to  be  styled  "  The 
Board  of  Education,"  which  board  shall  consist  of  five  members,  three  or  more  of 
whom  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business ;  Effingham  W. 
Lawrence,  Edward  E.  Mitchell,  Samuel  B.  Parsons,  William  H.  Fairweather  and 
Thomas  Leggett,  junior,  shall  compose  the  first  board  of  education,  and  shall  hold 
their  offices  from  one  to  five  years ;  that  is  to  say,  one  shall  go  out  of  office  in 
each  year,  and  in  the  order  in  which  their  names  stand  recorded  in  this  section. 

§  3.  There  shall  be  elected  in  each  year,  in  said  district,  one  member  of  said 
board  of  education,  who  shall  be  a  resident  and  taxable  inhabitant  of  said  di.^rict, 
and  shall  hold  his  office  for  five  years ;  the  said  election  shall  take  place  at  the 
annual  meeting  of  said  district ;  and  the  board  of  education  shall  appoint  three 
suitable  persons  as  inspectors  of  said  election,  and  of  all  other  elections  provided 
for  by  this  act,  except  as  provided  in  section  fourteenth  of  this  act,  within  thirty 
days  next  preceding  any  such  election ;  such  elections  shall  be  by  ballot,  and 
notice  thereof  shall  be  given,  the  same  shall  be  held  and  conducted,  the  votes 
shall  be  canvassed,  and  the  result  of  the  election  determined,  in  the  same  manner 
as  in  the  case  of  the  annual  election  of  other  village  officers. 

§  4.  The  board  of  education  may  make  all  necessary  by-laws  for  their  govern- 
ment ;  they  shall  have  the  entire  control  and  management  of  all  the  common 
schools  within  the  said  district,  and  all  the  property  belonging  to  the  same ;  they 
shall  have  and  possess,  within  the  said  district,  all  the  rights,  powers  and  authority 
of  town  superintendent  of  common  schools.  They  may  appoint  a  collector,  with 
all  the  powers  and  duties  of  a  district  collector,  or  may  employ  the  town  or  vil- 
lage collector  for  that  purpose;  and  such  collector  shall  collect  and  pay  over  the 
school  moneys  assessed  upon  said  district  to  the  treasurer  of  the  board  of  educa- 
tion in  the  same  manner  and  under  the  same  conditions  as  is  imposed  by  the  laws 
of  the  town  or  village  of  which  he  is  such  collector.  They  shall  require  two  of 
the  members  of  said  board  to  visit  each  school  in  said  district  at  least  once  in  each 
Meek,  to  render  such  assistance  to  the  teachers  and  advice  to  the  pupils  as  may 
be  necessary,  and  to  see  that  the  regulations  are  rigidly  adhered  to. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
raise  a  sum  not  exceeding  the  sum  of  five  thousand  dollars,  either  by  a  tax  on  said 
district  or  by  a  loan,  such  loan  to  be  secured  by  a  mortgage  upon  the  public 
school  property  of  said  district,  to  be  executed  by  said  board  in  their  official 
capacity. 

§  6.  The  said  board  of  education,  in  addition  to  the  other  taxes  which  they  are 
hereby  authorized  to  raise,  may  levy  and  collect  a  sum  sufficient  to  pay  interest 
on  loans,  as  the  same  becomes  due  ;  and  whenever  any  part  of  the  principal  of 
such  loans  becomes  due,  they  shall  levy  and  collect  an  amount  sufficient  to  pay 


FLUSHING.  385 

the  same,  which  sums,  when  collected,  shall  be  paid  over  by  said  board  in  dis- 
charge of  such  principal  and  interest. 

§  7.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  levy 
and  collect  by  tax  in  each  year,  upon  all  the  taxable  property  in  said  district, 
such  sum  as  may  be  necessary,  not  exceeding  in  amount  one-fourth  of  one  per 
cent  on  the  value  of  such  taxable  property,  as  the  same  shall  be  assessed  by  the 
assessors  of  the  town  of  Flushing.  And  the  said  board  shall  add  to  the  amount 
of  any  warrant  for  the  collection  of  taxes  such  amount  as  they  shall  deem  proper, 
as  the  collector's  fees  for  collection,  which  compensation,  however,  shall  in  no 
case  exceed  five  per  cent  on  the  amount  of  any  warrant. 

§  8.  The  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  of  the  town  of  Flushing  shall 
pay  over  to  the  treasurer  of  the  board  of  education  all  the  public  moneys  to 
which  said  district  number  five  shall  be  entitled  for  school  purposes. 

§  9.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  call  an  annual  district  meeting  at  such 
time  in  the  year  as  they  may  think  proper,  and  shall  submit  thereto  a  full  report 
in  writing  of  their  doings  as  such  board,  and  shall  state  therein  the  number  and 
condition  of  the  schools  in  said  district  under  their  charge,  and  the  number  of 
scholars  attending  the  same,  the  studies  pursued,  the  amount  of  moneys  received 
from  the  state,  as  well  as  the  amount  required  in  the  district  for  school  purposes, 
and  the  expenditure  of  the  same,  and,  generally,  all  the  particulars  relating  to 
the  schools  in  said  district;  which  report  shall,  immediately  after  it  is  made,  be 
published  in  a  newspaper  published  in  the  town  of  Flushing,  for  two  weeks,  and 
once  in  each  week. 

§  10.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  control  and  charge  of  the  district 
school  library  in  said  district ;  they  may  employ  a  librarian,  make  such  addition 
to  the  library  and  such  regulations  in  relation  thereto  as  they  shall  deem 
necessary. 

§  11.  The  school  for  the  colored  children  under  the  charge  of  the  female  asso- 
ciation in  the  village  of  Flushing  may,  with  the  consent  of  said  association,  be 
taken  under  the  charge  of  the  board  of  education  and  be  organized  as  a  district 
school,  and  be  supported  as  the  other  schools  in  said  district  are  under  this  act. 

§  12.  Whenever  the  said  board  of  education  shall  deem  it  necessary  to  erect 
one  or  more  school-houses  in  said  district,  they  shall  prepare  an  estimate  showing 
the  location  proposed,  the  cost  of  the  ground  required,  a  plan  of  the  building, 
with  the  estimated  cost  of  the  building  and  appurtenances,  and  shall  submit  the 
same  to  the  electors  of  said  district  at  a  special  meeting,  to  be  called  for  that  pur- 
pose in  the  same  manner  as  other  special  meetings  are  required  to  be  called,  and 
if  a  majority  of  all  the  electors  present  at  such  meeting  shall  vote  in  favor  of  the 
same,  then  said  board  may  proceed  to  erect  said  school-house  or  houses  in  the 
manner  proposed  by  said  estimate ;  and  if  the  sum  authorized  to  be  raised  by 
section  five  of  this  act  should  be  insufficient  to  pay  the  estimated  cost  of  such 
buildings  and  ground,  with  the  expense  of  grading  and  regulating  the  grounds, 
building  the  necessary  out-houses  and  fences,  with  the  cost  of  the  necessary 
books,  stationery  and  necessary  apparatus  for  the  school-house  and  rooms,  then 
the  said  board  of  education  may  raise  a  sum,  in  addition  to  the  sum  mentioned  in 
section  five,  and  in  the  manner  therein  authorized,  a  sum  not  exceeding  fifteer 
hundred  dollars ;  and  they  are  also  authorized  to  levy  and  collect  such  amount,  as 
may  be  necessary  to  pay  the  principal  or  interest  of  such  additional  sum  as  may 
become  due,  in  the  same  manner  as  is  provided  in  section  sixth  of  the  said  act. 

§  13.  The  said  board  of  education  may  call  special  meetings  of  said  district 
whenever  they  may  deem  it  necessary ;  they  shall  give  notice  of  the  same  by 
posting  up  a  written  or  printed  notice  thereof,  in  at  least  four  public  places  in 
said  village,  and  by  publishing  the  same  in  a  newspaper  published  in  the  village 
of  Flushing,  at  least  one  week  previous  to  the  time  fixed  for  said  meeting,  which 
notice  shall  state  the  time  and  place  of  such  meeting  and  the  purpose  for  which 
the  same  is  called ;  and  no  business  shall  be  transacted  at  any  such  special  meet- 
ing except  that  stated  in  the  notice  calling  the  same. 

[Code.]  49 


38G  FORT  COVINGTON. 


FORT  COVINGTON. 
[Laws  of  1853,  chap.  155.] 

Sfxtion  1.  There  shall  hereafter  be  elected  in  school  district  number  one, 
formed  of  school  districts  numbers  one  and  two,  in  the  town  of  Fort  Covington 
and  county  of  Franklin,  three  or  five  trustees,  who  shall  respectively  hold  their 
offices  three  or  five  years  (as  the  term  of  office  may  be).  Preserved  Ware, 
Warren  L.  Manning,  William  Hogle,  G.  A.  Streeter,  H.  B.  Mears,  and  George  A. 
Cheney  are  hereby  appointed  trustees  of  said  district,  and  shall  respectively  hold 
said  office  as  follows,  namely  :  the  term  of  office  of  Preserved  Ware  and  Warren 
L.  Manning  shall  expire  at  the  same  time  that  tbe  time  of  office  of  Henry  A. 
Paddock,  a  trustee  of  said  district,  shall  expire;  the  term  of  office  of  William 
Hogle  and  G.  A  Streeter  shall  expiie  at  the  same  time  that  the  term  of  office  of 
A.  M.  Lincoln,  a  trustee  of  said  district,  shall  expire ;  and  the  term  of  office  of 
H.  B.  Mears  and  George  A.  Cheney  shall  expire  at  the  same  time  that  the  term 
of  office  of  Christopher  Briggs,  as  trustee  of  said  district,  shall  expire. 

§  2.  The  trustees  of  said  district,  and  their  successors  in  office,  shall  constitute 
a  board  of  education  for  said  district ;  and,  for  the  purposes  of  this  act,  in  addition 
to  the  present  powers  and  duties  of  trustees,  are  hereby  constituted  a  body  politic 
and  corporate,  by  the  name  and  title  of  "  The  Board  of  Education  of  the  village 
of  Fort  Covington;"  and  said  corporation  shall  have  power  to  establish  and 
organize  a  classical  school  in  said  village,  to  be  known  by  the  name  of  the  "  Fort 
Covington  Academy  ;"  and  such  classical  school  shall  be  subject  to  all  laws  and 
regulations  applicable  to  other  incorporated  academies  of  this  state,  and  shall  be 
entitled  to  share  in  the  distribution  of  the  moneys  of  the  literature  fund,  upon 
the  same  terms  as  other  academies  of  this  state;  and  the  regents  of  the  univer- 
sity shall  recognize  said  academy  as  such,  as  soon  as  the  required  sum  of  money 
shall  be  expended  in  buildings  and  competent  teachers  employed  therein. 

§  3.  Said  board  of  education  shall  appoint  one  of  their  number  president  of 
said  board,  who  shall  preside  at  the  meetings  of  said  board,  when  present;  when 
absent,  a  president  pro  tempore  shall  be  appointed  in  his  stead.  They  shall  also 
appoint  one  of  their  number  secretary,  who  shall  record  all  the  acts  and  resolu- 
tions of  said  board ;  and  in  the  absence  of  the  secretary,  a  secretary  pro  tempore 
shall  be  appointed  to  discharge  such  duties.  They  shall  also  appoint  a  collector, 
librarian  and  treasurer  of  said  district,  who  shrill  hold  their  offices  (respectively) 
one  year  from  their  appointment,  and  until  others  are  appointed  in  their  places, 
unless  sooner  removed  by  said  board  ;  such  collector,  librarian  and  treasurer  shall 
each,  within  ten  days  after  notice  has  been  received  of  their  appointment  in  writ- 
ing, and  before  entering  upon  their  duties  of  office,  execute  and  deliver  to  said 
board  of  education  a  bond,  in  such  penalty  and  with  such  sureties  as  said  board 
may  require,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  office.  In 
case  such  bond  shall  not  be  given  within  ten  days  after  receiving  such  notice, 
such  office  shall  thereby  become  vacated,  and  said  board  of  education  shall  there- 
upon make  an  appointment  to  fill  such  vacancy. 

§  4.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  fill  any  vacancy  which 
may  happen  by  reason  of  the  death,  removal  from  office,  or  from  the  said  district, 
of  any  of  said  board  ;  and  the  officer  so  appointed  shall  hold  his  office  for  the 
unexpired  term  of  the  person  to  supply  whose  place  he  shall  be  appointed. 

§  5.  Said  board  of  education,  or  any  one  of  them,  may  be  removed  from  office 
for  the  non-performance  of  any  duty  imposed  upon  them,  or  any  one  of  them, 
as  set  forth  in  this  act,  by  a  two-third  vote  of  the  legal  voters  present  of  said 
district,  at  any  annual  or  special  meeting  of  said  district ;  and  the  vacancies  or 
vacancy  then  caused  may  be  tilled  at  such  annual  or  special  meeting  by  a  majority 
of  the  legal  voters  then  and  there  present.  Notice  of  annual  and  special  meetings 
shall  be  given,  in  tbe  same  manner  that  annual  and  special  meetings  are  given  in 
the  common  school  districts  of  this  state. 


FORT  COVINGTON.  387 

§  6.  Said  board  of  education  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all 
the  duties  in  respect  to  said  district  that  the  trustees  of  common  schools  are  now 
subject  to  or  now  possess. 

§  7.  The  taxable  inhabitants  of  said  district,  at  any  annual,  special  or  adjourned 
meeting  legally  held,  may  vote  to  raise  such  sum  of  money  as  they  shall  deem 
expedient  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  a  site  and  building  a  school-honse  in 
said  district,  or  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  any  suitable  building  for  such 
purpose,  and  direct  the  trustees  to  cause  the  sum  to  be  levied  and  raised  by 
installments,  and  make  out  a  tax  for  the  collection  of  the  same,  as  often  as  such 
installments  shall  become  due;  and  the  legal  voters  at  any  such  meeting  are 
authorized  to  fix  the  compensation  for  collecting  and  paying  over  to  the  said 
board  of*  education  the  amount  so  levied. 

§  8.  The  inhabitants  of  said  district  shall  have  no  power  to  rescind  the  vote  to 
raise  such  sum  of  money  at  any  subsequent  meeting,  unless  the  same  be  done 
within  ten  days  thereafter;  nor  shall  they  have  power  to  reduce  the  amount  of 
the  same  after  the  expiration  of  ten  days  from  the  time  the  tax  was  first  levied, 
but  may  remit  such  sum  as  shall  remain  unappropriated  after  paying  for  the  site 
and  erection  of  the  house  or  purchase  of  suitable  buildings. 

§  9.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  to  obtain  by  loan  the 
whole  or  any  part  of  the  money  legally  voted  by  said  district,  and  secure  the 
payment  of  the  same  by  their  official  bonds. 

§  10.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
sell  at  public  action,  to  the  highest  bidder,  the  school-houses  and  sites  belonging 
to  said  district,  by  giving  public  notice,  to  be  posted  in  ten  public  places  in  said 
district,  ten  days  previous  to  such  sale,  towards  purchasing  a  site  and  erecting  a 
school  house  in  said  district,  or  to  such  other  purpose  as  said  district  shall  direct ; 
such  sale  may  be  made  upon  such  terms  of  credit  as  said  board  of  education  shall 
determine  upon,  and  a  bond  and  mortgage  taken  by  said  board  for  the  whole  or 
any  part  of  the  purchase  money  or  price  for  which  said  site  and  house  may  be 
sold,  and  such  bond  and  mortgage  may  be  sold  and  assigned  by  said  board  at  par, 
for  money  to  be  applied  by  them  as  herein  provided. 

§  11.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
make  such  by-laws  and  regulations  as  they  may  deem  necessary  to  secure  the 
prosperity,  order  and  government  of  said  school,  and.divide  the  same  into  primary 
and  higher  departments,  and  regulate  the  transfer  of  scholars  from  one  depart- 
ment to  the  other,  and  provide  suitable  instructors  for  each  department,  direct 
what  text  books  shall  be  used  in  the  same,  in  carrying  out  the  above  provisions 
of  this  section ;  the  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  in  said  town  shall 
constitute  one  of  said  board ;  said  board  shall  purchase  fuel  and  other  necessaries 
for  the  use  of  the  school  or  schools  in  said  district,  and  all  contracts  made  by 
them  in  their  official  capacity  shall  be  binding  on  them  and  their  successors  in 
office ;  to  fix  and  regulate  the  terms  of  tuition  fees  in  said  primary  and  other 
higher  departments,  to  sue  for  and  collect  in  their  corporate  name  any  sum  of 
money  due  to  said  district,  to  receive  and  apply  to  the  uses  of  said  school  or 
schools,  or  any  department  thereof,  any  gift,  legacy,  bequest,  or  annuities,  given 
or  bequeathed  to  said  board,  and  apply  the  same  according  to  the  instruction  of 
the  said  doner  or  testator  ;  to  take  and  hold  any  real  estate  given  or  bequeathed 
to  said  board  for  the  purpose  of  said  school  or  schools,  or  any  department  thereof, 
and  apply  the  same,  or  the  interest  or  proceeds  thereof,  according  to  the  terms 
and  instructions  of  the  doner  or  testator  ;  to  have  in  all  respects  the  superintend- 
ence, supervision,  management  and  control  of  said  schools  or  any  department 
thereof  (except  when  otherwise  provided  for  in  this  act),  and  to  hire,  pay,  and 
dismiss  any  teacher  or  teachers  employed  by  them  in  said  school  or  any  depart- 
ment thereof. 

§  12.  Said  board  of  education  shall,  in  all  respects,  be  subject  to  the  restric- 
tions and  control  of  the  superintendents  of  common  schools  of  the  town,  county 
and  state,  in  the  same  manner  that  the  common  schools  in  this  state  are  subject. 

§  13.  Said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  and  are  hereby  authorized  to 
receive  into  said  academy,  and  cause  to  be  instructed  therein,  any  pupil  or  pupils 


388  FORT  COVINGTON— GLENS  FALLS. 

residing  in  or  out  of  said  district,  and  to  regulate  and  establish  the  terms  of 
tuition  lees  of  such  resident  or  non-resident  pupils.  And  said  board  of  education 
shall  have  power  to  regulate  the  tuition  fees  and  rates  of  charges  in  the  higher 
English  and  classical  departments  of  said  academy,  and  shall  have  power  to  make 
such  application  of  the  money  raised  for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  said 
district,  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages,  as  said  board  shall  determine,  and 
may  divide  and  apportion  the  same  as  said  board  may  deem  best,  to  pay  the  salaries 
of  teachers  employed  in  said  academy  or  the  elementary  English  branches  in  the 
schools  connected  therewith  or  maintained  in  said  district  under  their  supervision. 
The  rates  of  tuition  in  the  elementary  English  branches  in  the  schools  maintained 
in  said  district  shall  be  subject  to  the  general  laws  relating  to  common  schools, 
and  after  applying  such  portion  of  the  money  received  in  said  district  as  said 
board  shall  determine,  to  the  support  of  such  elementary  English  department, 
such  sum,  not  to  be  less  than  one-half  of  all  the  moneys  received  in  said  district 
for  the  support  of  common  schools  therein,  the  additional  sum  required  to  pay 
teachers'  wages  and  provide  fuel  and  other  contingent  expenses  necessary  to  the 
support  of  such  elementary  schools,  shall  be  estimated,  assessed,  collected  and 
applied  in  the  manner  provided  in  chapter  one  bundled  and  forty  and  four 
hundred  and  four  of  the  Session  Laws  of  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  forty- 
nine,  or  in  such  other  manner  as  shall  be  hereafter  provided  by  laws  for  the  sup- 
port of  common  schools. 

§  14.  All  moneys  raised  in  said  district  for  the  purpose  of  said  school,  and  all 
moneys  to  be  received  by  such  district  from  the  common  school  fund  or  other 
sources,  shall  be  annually  paid  to  the  said  board  of  education  or  to  their  order, 
and  be  applied  by  them  for  the  uses  of  said  school  or  schools  according  to  law. 

§  15.  The  members  of  said  board  of  education,  before  receiving  any  moneys 
belonging  to  said  district,  shall  severally  execute  to  the  town  superintendent  of 
common  schools  of  the  town  of  Fort  Covington,  their  separate  bonds,  with  two 
sufficient  sureties  to  be  approved  by  said  town  superintendent,  in  a  penalty  at 
least  douhle  the  amount  to  be  expended  by  them  for  the  benefit  of  said  school 
during  the  next  ensuing  year;  conditioned,  that  such  trustee  giving  such  bond 
will  faithfully  account  for  the  expenditure  of  all  moneys  he  shall  receive  for  said 
district  and  pay  over  the  balance  remaining  in  his  hands  at  the  time  of  the  expi- 
ration of  his  office  to  the  other  trustees;  and  the  district,  at  any  legal  meeting 
thereof,  may  require  the  penalty  of  such  bond  to  be  increased  or  additional  secu- 
rity to  be  given  by  either  or  all  of  the  trustees,  if  they  shall  deem  the  same 
insufficient ;  and  any  trustee  or  treasurer  of  said  district,  or  any  member  of  said 
board,  who  shall  apply  any  moneys  of  said  district  to  his  own  use,  shall  be 
deemed  guilty  of  embezzlement. 

§  16.  The  trustees  and  stockholders  of"  Fort  Covington  Academy  "  are  hereby 
empowered,  by  a  vote  of  a  majority  of  its  members  at  any  regular  meeting,  to 
convey  to  the  board  of  education  hereinbefore  named,  their  buildings,  apparatus, 
books,  funds,  together  with  all  the  appurtenances  to  the  said  "  Fort  Covington 
Academy  "  belonging. 

§  17.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  the  same  control  over  the  watering 
places  and  military  lands  on  the  mile  square,  in  the  town  of  Fort  Covington,  as 
the  board  of  trustees  of  Fort  Covington  Academy  has  heretofore  possessed. 


GLENS  FALLS. 

By  chap.  424,  Laws  of  1851 ,  the  libraries  of  districts  two,  seven,  eight,  eighteen, 
nineteen  and  twenty,  in  the  town  of  Queensbury,  in  Warren  county,  were  united 
into  one  common  library,  called  the  common  school  library  of  Glens  Falls, 
under  the  charge  of  three  directors,  appointed  by  the  trustees  of  the  village  of 
Glens  Falls. 


HUDSON.  389 


HUDSON. 


I  Laws  o/1841,  chap.  350,  as  amended  by  chap.  12,  Laws  of  1843,  and  chap.  132, 

Laws  of  1844.] 

Section  1.  The  members  of  the  common  council  of  the  city  of  Hudson  shall, 
by  virtue  of  their  office,  be  commissioners  for  common  schools  in  and  for  said 
city,  and  in  common  council  shall  perforin  all  the  duties  of  such  commissioners, 
and  shall  possess  all  the  rights,  powers  and  authority,  and  shall  be  subject  to  all 
the  duties  and  obligations  of  commissioners  of  common  schools  [town  superinten- 
dent] in  the  several  towns  of  this  state,  and  shall  have  power : 

1.  To  divide  the  city  into  school  districts,  of  which  there  shall  not  be  less  than 
three  in  the  compact  part  of  the  city  ; 

2.  They  shall  designate,  purchase  or  lease,  or  otherwise  obtain,  in  each  school 
district,  a  site  or  sites  for  a  school-house  or  the  school-houses  therein,  and  shall 
fence  or  improve  the  same  in  such  manner  as  to  them  shall  appear  suitable  and 
proper ; 

3.  They  shall  cause  to  be  built  or  procured  in  each  district  such  school-house 
or  school-houses  and  out-houses,  as  shall  appear  to  them  suitable  and  sufficient ; 

4.  They  shall  complete,  improve,  enlarge  or  repair  any  district  school-house, 
from  time  to  time,  as  they  shall  think  proper ;  and  they  shall  supply  the  district 
school-houses,  whenever  they  shall  deem  it  expedient,  with  such  school  appara- 
tus, books,  furniture  and  appendages  as  they  may  think  necessary ; 

5.  They  shall  appoint,  in  the  manner  provided  by  them  for  the  appointment  of 
other  officers  of  said  city,  three  persons,  to  be  denominated  a  board  of  superinten- 
dents ;  of  these  three  persons  the  one  first  chosen  shall  continue  in  office  for  three 
years,  the  one  next  appointed  shall  continue  in  office  for  two  years,  and  the  one 
last  appointed  shall  continue  in  office  for  one  year ; 

6.  They  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to  make  such  by-laws  and 
ordinances  as  may  be  in  their  opinion  necessary  for  the  prosperity  and  good  order 
and  efficient  government  of  the  common  schools,  and  the  security  and  the  preser- 
vation of  the  school-houses  and  other  property  belonging  to  the  school  districts ; 
and  to  prescribe  the  duties  and  powers  of  the  board  of  superintendents,  in  all  cases 
not  provided  for  by  this  act ; 

7.  They  shall  require  and  take  from  the  superintendents  and  collectors  such 
security  as  they  shall  deem  expedient;  and  if  such  security  is  not  given  by  any 
superintendent  or  collector,  the  said  common  council  may  declare  his  office  for- 
feited, and  appoint  another  superintendent  or  collector  in  his  place  ; 

8.  They  shall  supply  a  vacancy  produced  in  the  board  of  superintendents  from 
any  cause;  the  person  appointed  to  fill  such  vacancy  shall  continue  in  office 
during  the  unexpired  remainder  of  the  term  for  which  his  predecessor  was  chosen, 
and  no  longer,  unless  reappointed  ; 

9.  They  shall  divide  the  district  schools  in  said  city  into  primary  and  higher 
departments,  or  otherwise,  whenever  they  shall  deem  such  division  desirable ;  and 
they  shall  prescribe  regulations  for  the  transfer  of  scholars  from  one  department 
to  another,  and  they  shall  direct  the  board  of  superintendents  to  provide  a  suffi- 
cient number  of  suitable  instructors  for  each  of  these  departments. 

§  2.  The  clerk  of  said  city,  by  right  of  office,  shall  be  the  clerk  of  the  mayor 
and  aldermen  thereof,  when  acting  as  commissioners  of  common  schools,  and  he, 
as  such  clerk,  shall  perform  all  the  duties  in  reference  to  said  city  that  the  town 
clerks  in  the  several  towns  in  this  state  perform  as  clerks  of  common  schools  in 
such  towns,  and  be  subject  to  the  same  penalties  for  the  neglect  thereof. 

§  3.  The  board  of  superintendents  of  common  schools  in  the  city  of  Hudson 
shall,  in  respect  to  the  common  schools  in  said  city,  possess  all  the  powers  and  be 
subject  to  all  the  duties  and  obligations  of  the  inspectors  of  the  common  schools 
in  the  different  towns  in  this  state ;  it  shall  carry  into  effect  all  the  ordinances 
and  orders  of  the  common  council  in  respect  to  common  schools;  and  it  shall 
be  lawful  for  the  said  common  council  to  assign  to  said  board  any  duty  required 


390  HUDSON. 

of  them  in  respect  to  the  common  schools  in  said  city.  The  said  board  shall  be 
under  the  direction  of  the  common  council,  and  they  shall  have  power,  and  it 
shall  he  their  duty  : 

1.  To  contract  for  and  superintend  the  building,  enlarging,  improving,  fur- 
nishing and  repairing  of  all  school-houses  under  the  charge  of  said  common 
council,  and  the  making  of  all  repairs  and  improvements  on  and  around  the 
same ; 

2.  To  provide  for  the  safe  keeping  of  the  district  school-houses  in  said  city; 

3.  To  contract  with  and  employ  all  the  teachers  in  the  several  districts  therein; 

4.  To  prevent  scholars  resident  in  one  district  from  attending  a  school  in 
another  district;  and,  also,  to  prevent  scholars  from  going  from  one  school  to 
another  in  the  same  district  without  having,  in  both  the  above  cases,  written  per- 
mission so  to  do  from  the  said  board ; 

5.  To  select  such  books  as  they  shall  deem  most  suitable  to  be  used  as  class 
books  in  the  schools,  and  to  establish  an  uniformity  in  all  the  schools  in  regard 
to  the  books  used  therein ; 

6.  To  visit  each  school  as  often  as  once  in  each  quarter,  and  to  report  the  con- 
dition of  the  same,  with  such  suggestions  for  the  improvement  thereof  to  the 
common  council  as  they  may  deem  advisable ;  which  reports  shall  be  published 
by  the  common  council  in  two  of  the  city  papers ; 

7.  To  remove  any  teacher  on  manifest  neglect  of  duty,  or  upon  his  violating 
his  contract,  upon  paying  such  teacher  pro  rata  for  the  time  he  has  been 
employed ; 

8.  To  pay  the  wages  of  all  the  teachers,  by  orders  on  the  common  council,  as 
commissioners  of  common  schools,  so  far  as  the  public  money  in  their  hands  or 
the  money  raised  by  tax,  as  to  be  hereafter  provided  for,  and  the  money  paid  over 
by  the  collector  of  the  rate  bills,  shall  be  sufficient  for  the  purpose; 

9.  To  make  out  rate  bills  for  the  payment  of  teacher  and  contingent  expenses 
against  the  parent  or  guardian  of  each  scholar,  and  expense  of  collection  of  the 
same  (  except  those  exempted,  as  hereafter  to  be  provided  for),  which  shall  not, 
however,  exceed  two  dollars  per  quarter  for  each  scholar ;  and  no  bill  shall  be 
made  out  for  less  time  than  one  quarter,  and  to  annex  thereto  a  warrant  for  the 
collection  thereof. 

g  4.  The  said  common  council  of  the  city  of  Hudson  shall  appoint  a  collector 
or  collectors  for  the  purpose  of  collecting  the  rate  bills,  if  any  are  made  out  by 
the  board  of  superintendents ;  rate  bills  shall  be  made  out  and  levied  upon  the 
parents  or  guardians  of  children  sent  to  the  district  schools,  in  the  manner  pro- 
vided by  law  in  respect  to  school  districts,  except  such  as  shall  procure  a  certifi- 
cate of  inability  to  pay  the  same  from  the  aldermen  or  assistant  aldermen  of  the 
ward  in  which  such  parent  or  guardian  resides. 

§  1.  [  Act  of  1843.]  The  hoard  of  superintendents,  appointed  or  to  be  appointed 
under  the  act  hereby  amended,  are  hereby  authorized  to  receive  all  the  moneys 
intended  for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  and  for  the  city  of  Hudson,  and  to 
expend  the  same  as  provided  in  said  act. 

§  2.  [  Act  of  1843.]  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  treasurer  of  the  county  of  Co- 
lumbia, and  of  the  collectors  of  taxes  in  and  for  the  city  of  Hudson,  and  of  the 
collectors  of  rate  bills,  under  the  provisions  of  the  act  hereby  amended,  to  pay 
over  directly  to  the  said  board  of  superintendents  all  the  moneys  that  may  come 
into  the  hands  of  said  treasurer  and  said  collectors,  respectively,  intended  for  the 
benefit  and  support  of  common  schools  in  said  city. 

§  5.  The  said  common  council  shall  be  authorized  to  borrow  the  sum  of  five 
thousand  dollars  for  twenty  years,  at  a  rate  of  interest  not  exceeding  six  per  cent 
per  annum,  for  the  purpose  of  procuring  suitable  school-houses  for  said  city,  with 
such  appurtenances  and  improvements  as  may  be  deemed  expedient. 

§  6.  The  comptroller  is  hereby  authorized  to  loan  to  the  city  of  Hudson  the 
sum  of  five  thousand  dollars,  to  be  paid  in  twenty  equal  annual  instalments,  out 
of  any  moneys,  now  or  hereafter  in  the  treasury  of  this  state,  belonging  to  the 
capital  of  the  common  school  fund,  on  receiving  from  the  chamberlain,  in  behalf 
fo  the  said  city,  a  bond,  conditioned  from  bflta  as  treasurer  of  said  city  and  his 


HUDSON.  391 

successor  in  office,  to  repay  the  said  sum  in  twenty  equal  annual  instalments, 
together  with  the  annual  interest  on  said  loan  from  the  time  it  was  made  at  the 
rate  of  six  per  cent  per  annum,  and  which  bond  said  chamberlain  is  hereby 
authorized  to  make  and  execute. 

§  7.  The  common  council  of  said  city  are  hereby  authorized  to  raise  by  tax 
upon  the  real  and  personal  property  of  said  city,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  gene- 
ral taxes  of  said  city  are  levied  and  collected,  the  annual  interest  of  the  above 
mentioned  loan,  and  to  pay  over  the  same  in  discharge  of  such  interest;  and  also, 
in  each  year  in  which  an  instalment  of  the  above  loan  shall  become  due,  to  raise, 
levy  and  collect,  in  the  same  manner,  a  sum  equal  to  that  instalment,  and  to  pay 
over  the  same  in  discharge  thereof;  and  the  said  common  council  shall  also  in 
the  same  manner  raise,  levy  and  collect  such  sum  annually,  not  exceeding  two 
hundred  dollars,  as  may  be  necessary  for  repairs,  furniture  of  said  school  build- 
ings and  contingent  expenses. 

§  8.  The  common  council  of  the  city  of  Hudson,  at  their  annual  meeting  in 
each  year,  shall  cause  a  sum  of  money  equal  to  four  times  the  amount  of  money 
apportioned  to  the  city  of  Hudson  from  the  common  school  fund,  together  with 
the  collector's  fees,  to  be  raised,  levied  and  collected  in  the  same  manner  that 
other  taxes  are  raised,  levied  and  collected,  and  when  so  raised  to  be  paid  to  the 
board  of  superintendents  for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  said  city. 

§  9.  After  the  year  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-three,  the  common 
council  shall  have  it  in  their  power  to  reduce,  if  they  deem  it  expedient,  the  above 
sum  to  twice  the  amount  apportioned  to  the  city  of  Hudson  from  the  common 
school  fund,  and  have  recourse  to  the  system  of  rate  bills,  as  adopted  in  the  seve- 
ral towns  in  this  state,  to  supply  deficiencies. 

§  1.  [Act  of  1841.]  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  superintendents  of  com- 
mon schools  of  the  city  of  Hudson  annually  hereafter  to  appoint  a  librarian  for  the 
joint  school  district  library  in  said  city,  who  shall  perform  all  the  duties  and  be  sub- 
ject to  all  the  restrictions  an  1  liabilities  now  required  or  imposed  upon  librarians  in 
the  several  school  districts  of  the  state;  and  may  be  removed  from  office  and  a 
successor  appointed  by  said  superintendents  for  any  wilful  neglect  of  duty,  and 
whenever  they  shall  have  reason  to  apprehend  the  ioss  of  or  injury  to  any  of  the 
books  belonging  to  such  library  through  his  misconduct. 

§  2.  [Act  of  1844.]  The  common  council  of  said  city  are  hereby  authorized  and 
empowered  annually  to  appropriate  such  sum  for  the  compensation  of  said  libra- 
rian as  they  may  deem  expedient,  not  to  exceed  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars,  which 
shall  be  raised,  levied  and  collected  in  the  manner  as  other  city  charges,  and 
when  so  collected  shall  be  paid  over  to  the  superintendents  aforesaid,  to  be  by 
them  appropriated  as  specified  in  the  first  section  of  this  act. 

§  10.  All  the  general  laws  of  this  state  relating  to  common  schools  and  their 
officers,  except  as  the  same  are  modified  by  this  act,  shall  extend  to  and  include 
the  schools  established  under  this  act,  and  the  commissioners,  inspectors  and  other 
officers  having  charge  thereof  or  in  any  way  connected  therewith. 

§  11.  All  laws  relating  to  the  appointment  of  commissioners  and  inspectors  of 
common  schools  in  the  city  of  Hudson,  and  the  act  entitled  "  An  act  to  authorize 
the  raising  of  money  for  the  support  of  the  Lancaster  school  of  the  city  of  Hudson," 
passed  May  11,  1835,  and  all  other  acts  which  conflict  with  this  act,  are  hereby 
repealed. 

[Laws  of  1854,  chap.  179.  ] 

TITLE    XI. OP    COMMON    SCHOOLS. 

§  104.  The  act  entitled  "  An  act  in  relation  to  common  schools  in  the  city  of 
Hudson,"  passed  May  26,  1841,  and  the  amendments  thereto,  shall  continue  in 
force,  except  that  section  eight- of  said  act  shall  be  and  hereby  is  amended,  so  as 
to  make  it  the  duty  of  the  common  council  of  the  city,  instead  of  the  supervisors 
of  the  county  of  Columhia,  to  cause  the  requisite  amount  of  school  moneys  to 
be  levied  and  collected  with  the  tax  for  city  purposes. 


392  JAMAICA. 

JAMAICA. 
[  Laws  of  1853,  chap.  533.  ] 

Sf.ction  1.  The  village  of  Jamaica,  in  the  town  of  Jamaica,  in  the  county  of 
Queens,  shall  form  a  permanent  school  district,  and  shall  not  be  subject  to  altera- 
tion by  the  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  for  the  town  of  Jamaica. 

§  2.  The  said  district  shall  be  under  the  direction  of  a  board,  to  be  styled  "  The 
Board  of  Education."  Such  board  shall  consist  of  five  members,  three  of  whom 
shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business.  Gasper  Phraner, 
Piermont  Potter,  John  A.  King,  John  D.  Shelton  and  Latham  M.  Jaggar  shall 
compose  the  first  board  of  education,  and  shall  hold  their  office  from  one  to  five 
years ;  that  is  to  say,  one  shall  go  out  of  office  in  each  year,  and  in  the  order  in 
which  their  names  stand  recorded  in  this  section. 

§  3.  At  the  first  annual  meeting  in  said  district,  and  at  each  annual  meeting 
thereafter,  there  shall  be  elected  one  member  of  said  board  of  education,  who 
shall  hold  his  office  for  the  term  of  five  years ;  also  a  district  collector,  both  of 
whom  shall  be  residents  and  tax  payers  in  said  district ;  and  said  collector  shall 
collect  and  pay  over  the  school  moneys  assessed  upon  said  district  to  the  treasurer 
of  the  board  of  education  in  the  same  manner  and  upon  the  same  conditions  as 
the  town  collector.  And  the  board  of  education  shall  appoint  three  suitable 
persons  as  inspectors  of  said  election  and  of  all  other  elections,  as  provided  by 
this  act,  within  thirty  days  next  preceding  any  such  election.  Such  election  shall 
be  by  ballot;  and  notice  thereof  shall  be  given,  the  same  shall  be  held  and  con- 
ducted, the  votes  shall  be  canvassed,  and  the  result  of  the  election  shall  be 
determined,  in  the  same  manner  as  for  village  officers. 

§  4.  The  said  board  of  education  shall,  at  their  first  annual  meeting,  choose 
one  of  their  number  for  president,  one  for  secretary  and  one  for  treasurer,  who 
shall  hold  office  for  one  year.  The  treasurer  shall  execute  a  bond  conditioned  for 
the  faithful  performance  of  his  duties,  in  such  form  and  with  such  sureties  as  the 
said  board  shall  approve.  An  election  for  said  officers  shall  be  held  thereafter  on 
the  same  day  of  the  same  week  of  the  same  month  on  which  the  first  election 
was  held.  If  from  any  cause  the  election  shall  not  take  place  on  the  day 
appointed,  it  shall  be  held  within  one  week  thereafter.  Until  such  election,  the 
old  officers  shall  continue  to  perform  their  respective  functions. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  may  make  such  by-laws  as  they  may  deem 
necessary  for  their  own  government ;  they  shall  have  the  entire  control  and  man- 
agement of  all  the  common  schools  within  their  said  district,  and  all  the  property 
belonging  to  the  same;  they  shall  have  and  possess,  within  the  said  district,  all 
the  rights,  powers  and  authority  of  town  superintendent  of  common  schools. 
They  shall  require  one  of  the  members  of  said  board  to  visit  each  school  in  said 
district  at  least  once  in  each  weak,  to  render  such  assistance  to  the  teachers  and 
advice  to  the  pupils  as  may  be  necessary,  and  to  see  that  the  rules  and  regula- 
tions are  strictly  enforced.  And  the  said  board  of  education  shall  have  the  power 
to  take  by  purchase  and  devise,  and  to  hold,  any  real  and  personal  estate  necessary 
for  the  purposes  of  this  act ;  and  also  to  sell  and  convey  the  school-houses  and 
sites  now  situated  in  said  district,  and  to  execute  and  deliver  good  and  valid  con- 
veyances therefor. 

§  6.  All  moneys  belonging  to  the  said  district  shall  be  deposited  in  a  bank  or 
trust  company,  to  be  designated  by  the  board  of  education,  or  loaned  out  on 
interest  upon  ample  security,  under  the  direction  of  the  board.  No  moneys  shall 
be  paid  out  or  securities  changed,  except  under  the  direction  of  the  board  of 
education,  and  then  by  order  of  the  president,  countersigned  by  the  secretary. 

§  7.  Whenever  the  said  board  of  education  shall  deem  it  necessary  to  erect  one 
or  more  school-houses  in  said  district,  and  before- they  shall  proceed  to  raise  any 
money,  as  provided  for  in  section  eight,  they  shall  prepare  an  estimate,  showing 
the  location  proposed,  the  cost  of  the  ground,  a  plan  of  the  building,  with  the 
estimated  cost  of  construction,  and  shall  submit  the  same  to  the  electors  of  said 


JAMAICA.  393 

district  at  a  special  meeting,  to  be  called  for  that  purpose  in  th«  same  manner  as 
other  special  meetings  are  required  to  be  called,  and  if  a  majority  of  all  the 
electors  present  shall  vote  in  favor  of  the  same,  then  said  board  may  proceed  to 
erect  said  school-house  or  houses  in  the  manner  proposed  by  said  estimate  ;  and 
if  the  sum  authorized  to  be  raised  by  section  eight  of  this  act  should  he  insuffi- 
cient to  pay  the  estimated  cost  of  such  erection  or  erections  and  premises,  with 
the  expense  of  grading  and  regulating  the  grounds,  building  the  necessary  out- 
houses and  fences,  with  the  cost  of  necessary  books,  stationery  and  appurtenances 
for  the  school-house  or  houses  and  rooms,  then  the  said  board  of  education  may 
raise,  in  addition  to  the  sum  mentioned  in  section  eight  of  this  act,  and  in  the 
manner  therein  authorized,  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars  ;  and  they 
are  also  authorized  to  levy  and  collect  such  amount  as  may  be  necessary  to  pay 
the  principal  or  interest  of  such  additional  sum  or  sums,  as  the  same  may  become 
due,  in  the  manner  provided  by  section  nine  of  this  act. 

§  8.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
raise  a  sum,  not  exceeding  five  thousand  dollars,  for  the  purpose  of  erecting  a 
school-house  or  houses  in  said  district,  either  by  tax  on  such  district,  or  a  loan  to  be 
secured  by  a  mortgage  upon  the  public  school  property  of  said  district,  to  be 
executed  by  said  board  in  their  official  capacity,  signed  by  the  president  and 
secretary,  or  by  the  issue  of  certificates  of  loan,  in  sums  of  not  less  than  one  hun- 
dred dollars,  the  said  certificates  to  be  signed  by  the  president  of  said  board,  and 
to  be  a  lien  upon  the  school  district  property.  The  comptroller  of  the  State  of 
New-York  is  hereby  authorized  to  loan  to  said  district  any  moneys  in  the  treasury 
belonging  to  the  capital  of  the  common  school  fund,  as  is  authorized  by  this  sec- 
tion to  be  borrowed. 

§  9.  The  said  board  of  education,  in  addition  to  the  other  taxes  which  they  are 
authorized  to  raise  by  this  act,  may  levy  and  collect  a  sum  sufficient  to  pay 
interest  on  loans  as  the  same  become  due,  and  whenever  any  part  of  the  principal 
of  such  loans  becomes  due,  they  shall  levy  and  collect  an  amount  sufficient  to  pay 
the  same,  which  sums,  when  collected,  shall  be  paid  over  by  said  board  in  dis- 
charge of  such  principal  and  interest. 

§  10.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  levy 
and  collect  by  tax,  in  each  year,  such  sum  as  may  be  necessary  upon  all  the 
taxable  property  in  said  district,  not  exceeding  in  amount  one-fifth  of  one 
per  cent  on  the  value  of  such  taxable  property,  as  the  same  shall  be  assessed  by 
the  assessors  of  the  town  of  Jamaica ;  and  the  said  board  shall  add  to  the  amount 
of  any  warrant  for  the  collection  of  taxes  such  amount  as  they  shall  deem  proper, 
as  the  collector's  fees  for  collection,  which  compensation,  however,  shall  in  no 
case  exceed  five  per  cent  on  the  amount  of  any  warrant. 

§  11.  The  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  of  the  town  of  Jamaica  shall 
pay  over  to  the  treasurer  of  the  board  of  education  all  the  public  moneys  to  which 
said  district  shall  be  entitled  for  school  purposes. 

§  12.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  call  an  annual  district  meeting  at  such 
time  in  the  year  as  they  may  think  proper,  by  giving  the  notice  now  required  by 
law  for  annual  meetings  in  school  districts,  and  at  such  meeting  they  shall  submit 
thereto  a  full  report  in  writing  of  their  doings  at  such  board  ;  and  they  shall  state 
therein  the  number  of  children  residing  in  the  said  district  of  whom  public  money 
is  drawn,  how  many  white  children  and  how  many  colored ;  they  shall  also  state 
the  number  and  condition  of  the  schools  in  said  district  under  their  charge,  and 
the  number  of  pupils  attending  the  same,  the  studies  pursued,  the  amount  of 
moneys  received  from  the  state  or  other  sources,  as  well  as  the  amount  raised  in 
the  district  for  school  purposes,  and  the  expenditure  of  the  same,  and  generally 
all  the  particulars  relating  to  the  schools  in  said  district. 

§  13.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  control  and  charge  of  the  district 
school  library  in  said  district;  they  may  employ  a  librarian,  make  such  additions 
to  the  library  and  such  regulations  therefor  as  they  shall  deem  necessary. 

§  14.  A  school  for  colored  children  may  be  organized  by  said  board,  and  be 
supported  in  the  same  manner  as  other  schools  shall  be  supported  under  and  by 
virtue  of  this  act. 

[Code.]  50 


394  LANSINGBURGH— LOCKPORT. 

§  15.  The  said  board  of  education  may  call  special  meetings  of  said  district 
whenever  they  may  deem  it  necessary ;  they  shall  give  notice  of  the  same  by 
posting  up  a  written  or  printed  notice  thereof  in  at  least  six  public  places  in  said 
district,  and  by  publishing  the  same  in  the  newspapers  published  in  said  district 
at  least  one  week  previous  to  the  time  fixed  for  such  meeting,  which  notice  shall 
state  the  time  and  place  of  such  meeting  and  the  purpose  for  which  the  same  is 
called ;  and  no  business  shall  be  transacted  at  any  such  special  meeting  except 
that  stated  in  the  notice  calling  the  same. 

§  16.  All  laws  and  parts  of  laws  inconsistent  with  this  act  are  hereby  repealed, 
so  far  as  they  relate  to  the  village  of  Jamaica. 


LANSINGBURGH. 

[Laws  of  1847,  chap.  836.] 

The  provisions  of  this  act  are  the  same  in  tenor  and  effect,  for  District  No.  1 
of  the  town  of  Lansingburgh,  as  those  of  the  act  ou  page  875,  ante,  in  respect  to 
Districts  Nos.  2,  3,  5  and  7  in  Castleton. 

LOCKPORT. 

[Laws  of  1847,  chap.  51 ;    Laws  of  1850,  chap.  77.] 

■  Section  1.  School  districts  numbers  one,  two,  five,  seven,  eight,  fifteen  and 
sixteen,  of  Lockport,  lying  principally  within  the  village  of  Lockport,  are  hereby 
consolidated  for  the  purposes  and  to  the  extent  in  this  act  specified ;  and  shall 
hereafter,  for  such  purposes,  and  to  such  extent,  form  but  one  school  district,  to 
be  called  "The  union  school  district  of  Lockport." 

§  2.  Said  seven  school  districts  shall  remain  and  continue  separate  and  distinct, 
for  the  purposes  and  to  the  extent  in  this  act  specified;  and  shall  be  called 
"primary  school  districts,"  and  numbered  as  follows: 

Said  district  number  one  shall  form  primary  district  number  one ; 

Said  district  number  two  shall  form  primary  district  number  two; 

Said  district  number  seven  shall  form  primary  district  number  three; 

Said  district  number  fifteen  shall  form  primary  district  number  four; 

Said  district  number  eight  shall  form  primary  district  number  five ; 

Said  district  number  sixteen  shall  form  primary  district  number  six;    and 

Said  district  number  five  shall  form  primary  district  number  seven. 
Said  districts  shall  not  be  subject  to  alteration  except  by  the  acts  of  the  legis- 
lature, or  by  resolution  of  the  board  of  education  hereinafter  created.  The 
schools  in  said  primary  districts  shall  be  used  as  preparatory  schools  for  the 
instruction  of  children  until  they  arrive  at  a  certain  age,  and  attain  a  certain 
proficiency  in  learning,  who  shall  then  be  transferred,  upon  the  proper  testimo- 
nials, into  the  union  school  hereinafter  mentioned;  the  age,  qualifications  and 
testimonials  to  be  prescribed  by  the  by-laws,  rules  and  regulations  of  the  board 
of  education  hereinafter  created. 

§  3.  Sullivan  Caverno,  residing  in  primary  district  number  one; 

William  G.  M'Master,  residing  in  primary  district  number  two; 

Joseph  T.  Bellah,  residing  in  primary  district  number  three; 

Silas  H.  Marks,  residing  in  primary  district  number  four; 

Isaac  C.  Coulton,  residing  in  primary  district  number  five; 

John  S.  Woolcott,  residing  in  primary  district  number  six ;  and 

Edwin  L.  Boardinan,  residing  in  primary  district  number  seven, 
are  hereby  appointed  trustees  in  behalf  of  such  districts  respectively  ;  and  Nathan 
Dayton,  Samuel  Works,  Jonathan  L.  Woods,  Lyman  A.  Spanlding  and  Hiram 
Gardner  are  hereby  appointed  trustees  in  behalf  of  said   union  district.     The 


LOCKPORT.  395 

trustees  so  named,  and  their  successors,  to  be  chosen  as  hereinafter  provided,  are 
hereby  constituted  a  corporation  by  the  name  of  "  The  Board  of  Education  for  the 
village  of  Lock  port." 

§  4.  On  the  first  Monday  of  September  next  there  shall  be  elected,  in  the 
manner  that  trustees  of  school  districts  are  now  elected,  by  each  primary  district, 
one  trustee  (who  shall  be  a  resident  of  such  primary  district),  to  fill  the  places 
of  those  named  in  the  last  section,  in  behalf  of  such  districts  respectively.  On 
the  first  Monday  of  October  next  there  shall  be  elected,  in  like  manner,  by  a 
meeting  of  the  persons  qualified  to  vote  for  school  district  officers,  residing  within 
the  bounds  of  said  union  district,  five  trustees,  resident  of  said  union  district,  to 
fill  the  places  of  those  named  in  the  last  section,  in  behalf  of  said  union  district. 
Annually  thereafter,  on  the  days  above  specified  for  such  elections,  there  shall,  in 
like  manner,  be  elected  four  trustees  to  fill  the  places  of  those  whose  terms  .shall 
next  thereafter  expire,  as  hereinafter  provided.  The  trustees  named  in  the  third 
section  above  shall  hold  their  offices  until  tiie  first  Monday  of  January  next,  and 
until  their  successors  shall  be  chosen  and  enter  upon  the  discharge  of  the  duties 
of  their  offices  respectively.  Every  officer  elected  under  this  act  shall  enter  upon 
the  duties  of  his  oiiice  on  the  first  Monday  of  January  next  succeeding  his 
election,  and  shall  hold  his  office  for  the  term  hereinafter  provided,  and  until  his 
successor  shall  be  elected,  and  shall  enter  upon  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his 
office.  Within  ten  days  after  any  such  election,  the  clerk  of  such  district  shall 
certify  to  said  board  of  education  the  names  of  the  officers  so  elected. 

§  5"  Within  ten  days  after  the  first  election  of  trustees  of  said  union  district,  as 
provided  in  the  last  section,  all  the  trustees  so  elected  by  said  primary  and  union 
districts,  or  a  majority  of  them,  shall  meet  and  cause  the  whole  number  of  trustees 
so  elected  to  be  divided  into  three  classes,  to  be  severally  numbered  first,  second 
and  third.  The  term  of  office  of  the  first  class  shall  expire  at  the  end  of  one 
year;  of  the  second  class,  at  the  end  of  two  years;  and  of  the  third  class,  at  the 
end  of  three  years  from  the  first  Monday  of  January  next.  There  shall  also  be 
elected  in  each  of  said  districts,  at  the  time  of  so  electing  trustees,  a  clerk,  who 
shall  hold  his  office  for  one  year,  and  until  his  successor  be  elected  and  enter  upon 
the  duties  of  his  office. 

§  6.  There  shall  annually  be  appointed,  by  said  board  of  education,  a  collector, 
librarian  and  treasurer  of  said  union  district,  who  shall  each,  within  ten  days 
after  receiving  notice  in  writing  of  his  appointment,  and  before  entering  upon  the 
duties  of  his  office,  execute  and  deliver  to  said  board  of  education  a  bond,  in  such 
penalty  and  with  such  sureties  as  said  board  may  require,  conditioned  for  the 
faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  office.  In  case  such  bond  shall  not  be  given 
within  ten  days  after  receiving  such  notice,  such  office  shall  thereby  become 
vacated,  and  said  board  of  education  shall  thereupon  make  an  appointment  to 
supply  such  vacancy. 

§  7.  Notices  for  annual  elections  and  all  other  meetings  of  said  districts  shall 
be  given  by  said  board  of  education,  at  least  ten  days  before  such  election  or 
meeting,  by  publishing  such  notice  once  in  each  of  the  newspapers  printed  in  the 
village  'of  Lockport ;  and  if  such  notice  be  for  an  election  or  meeting  of  said  union 
district,  by  posting  the  same  on  the  door  of  the  school-house  in  each  primary  dis- 
trict; if  such  notice  be  for  an  election  or  meeting  of  any  primary  district,  then  by 
posting  such  notice  on  the  door  of  the  school-house  in  such  district.  _ 

§  8.  In  case  of  a  vacancy  of  any  office  mentioned  in  this  act,  occasioned  by  the 
death  of  such  officer,  his  refusal  to  serve,  removal  out  of  the  district  for  which  he 
shall  have  been  elected  or  appointed,  his  incapacity,  or  any  cause  other  than  the 
expiration  of  the  term  of  office  of  persons  elected,  said  board  of  education  may 
make  an  appointment  to  fill  such  vacancy.  The  officer  so  appointed  shall  hold 
his  office  for  the  unexpired  term  of  the  person,  to  supply  whose  place  he  shall  be 
bo  appointed.  , 

§  9.  Said  board  of  education  shall  be  a  corporate  body,  in  relation  to  all  the 
powers  and  duties  conferred  upon  them  by  virtue  of  the  provisions  of  this  act ;  a 
majority  of  the  board  shall  form  a  quorum. 


396  LOCKPORT. 

§  10.  Said  board  of  education  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all 
the  duties,  in  respect  to  all  of  said  school  districts,  that  the  trustees  of  common 
schools  now  possess  or  are  subject  to,  and  such  other  powers  and  duties  as  are 
given  or  imposed  by  this  act.  The  clerk,  collector  and  librarian  of  said  union 
district  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all  the  duties,  in  respect  to 
said  union  district,  that  like  officers  of  common  schools  now  possess  or  are  subject 
to,  and  such  other  powers  and  duties  as  are  given  or  imposed  by  this  act.  The 
offices  of  collector  and  librarian,  and  two  of  the  trustees  of  each  of  the  school  dis- 
tricts hereby  consolidated,  shall  be  abolished  from  and  after  the  time  when  said 
union  school  shall  go  into  operation.  In  the  mean  time,  such  officers  and  the 
several  districts,  in  district  meetings,  shall  continue  to  discharge  such  ordinary 
powers  and  duties  as  said  board  of  education  may  by  resolution  prescribe;  but 
they  shall  not  possess  or  exercise  any  right  or  power  which  may  conflict  with  the 
provisions  of  this  act,  or  impair  the  powers  hereby  intended  to  be  conferred  on 
said  board  of  education,  or  in  any  way  embarrass  the  said  board  of  education  in 
the  exercise  of  the  powers  or  in  the  discharge  of  the  duties  conferred  or  imposed 
upon  said  board  by  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  11.  Said  board  of  education  shall,  at  its  first  meeting,  and  annually  there- 
after, at  their  meeting  held  next  after  the  first  of  January  in  each  year,  appoint 
one  of  their  number  president  and  another  secretary.  In  the  absence  of  either  of 
such  officers  at  any  regular  meeting  of  the  board,  a  president  or  secretary  may 
be  appointed  for  the  time  being. 

§  12.  The  secretary  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of  said  board  of 
education,  which  record  or  a  transcript  therefrom,  certified  by  the  president  and 
secretary,  shall  be  received  in  all  courts  as  presumptive  evidence  of  the  facts 
therein  set  forth. 

§  13.  Each  member  of  said  board  of  education,  and  every  other  officer  of  said 
union  district,  before  entering  upon  the  duties  of  his  office,  shall  take  and  sub- 
scribe the  oath  of  office  prescribed  by  the  constitution  of  this  state  and  file  the 
same  with  the  secretary  of  said  board. 

§  14.  Said  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty: 

1.  To  establish  and  organize  so  many  primary  schools  as  they  shall  deem 
requisite  and  expedient,  and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same; 

2.  To  purchase  or  hire  school-houses,  rooms,  lots  or  sites  for  school-houses,  and 
to  fence  and  improve  them  as  they  may  think  proper; 

3.  Upon  such  lots  or  sites,  and  upon  any  lot  or  site  now  owned  by  any  primary 
district,  to  build,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses,  out-houses  and 
appurtenances,  as  they  may  deem  advisable ; 

4.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages ;  to  provide  fuel  for  the  schools,  and  defray  their  contingent 
expenses  and  the  expenses  of  the  library  and  salary  of  the  librarian ; 

5.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses,  out-houses,  ap- 
paratus, books,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  see  that  the  ordinances  and  by-laws 
of  said  board  in  relation  thereto  be  observed ; 

6.  To  contract  with  and  employ  all  teachers  in  all  the  schools  under  their  charge 
and  at  their  pleasure  to  remove  them; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  public  money  and  tuition  fees 
to  be  received  by  them,  according  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  so  far  as  the  same 
shall  be  sufficient,  and  the  deficiency,  if  any,  out  of  the  moneys  to  be  raised  for 
general  purposes  of  education  under  and  by  virtue  of  the  provisions  of  this  act; 

8.  To  fix  the  rate  of  tuition  fees  in  said  union  school,  subject  to  the  limitations 
and  restrictions  hereinafter  contained,  and  to  designate  some  person  or  persons  to 
whom  the  same  may  be  paid  previous  to  issuing  the  warrant  for  the  collection 
thereof;  and,  by  a  resolution  of  said  board,  to  be  recorded  by  the  secretary,  to 
exempt  from  the  payment  of  the  whole  or  any  part  of  the  tuition  fees  such  per- 
sons as  they  may  deem  entitled  to  such  exemption  from  indigence  or  any  other 
sufficient  cause; 

9.  After  the  close  of  each  quarter  of  said  union  school  to  make  out  a  rate  bill 
containing  the  name  of  each  person  liable  to  pay  tuition  fees  for  tuition  in  said 


LOCKPORT.  397 

union  school,  who  shall  not  have  paid  the  same  prior  to  making  out  such  rate  bill, 
according  to  the  provisions  of  the  last  preceding  subdivision  of  this  section,  and 
the  amount  for  which  such  person  is  liable,  adding  thereto  a  sum  not  exceeding 
five  cents  on  each  dollar  for  collector's  fees  (which  fees  shall  be  fixed  by  said 
board  at  the  time  of  making  out  every  rate  bill);  to  annex  thereto  a  warrant  for 
the  collection  thereof,  to  be  signed  by  the  president  of  said  board  or  a  majority 
of  the  members  thereof,  and  deliver  the  same  to  the  collector,  who  shall  collect 
the  same  in  the  same  manner  as  collectors  of  school  districts  are  by  law  au- 
thorized and  required  to  execute  like  warrants  issued  by  the  trustees  of  common 
school  districts,  and  who,  in  the  execution  of  the  same,  shall  be  under  the  same 
protection,  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all  the  duties  as  such  col- 
lectors now  have,  possess  and  are  subject  to  in  respect  to  like  warrants;  and,  for 
this  purpose,  the  jurisdiction  of  said  board  of  education  and  of  said  collector 
shall  extend  to  any  other  district  or  town,  and  to  any  resident  of  such  other 
district  or  town  who  may  be  liable  for  tuition  in  said  union  school,  in  the  same 
manner  and  with  the  like  authority  as  to  said  union  district  or  residents  of  said 
union  district ; 

10.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision,  management  and 
control  of  all  the  schools  mentioned  or  contemplated  in  and  by  the  provisions 
of  this  act ;  to  prescribe  the  course  of  studies  therein,  the  books  to  be  used,  and 
establish  an  uniformity  in  respect  to  such  course  of  studies  and  books;  from 
time  to  time  to  adopt,  alter,  modify  and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  rules, 
regulations  and  ordinances  for  the  organization,  government  and  instructions  of 
such  schools,  for  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their  transfer  from  one  school  to 
another,  for  the  promotion  of  their  good  order,  prosperity  and  public  utility,  for 
the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and  preservation  of  school-houses,  lots,  sites 
and  appurtenances,  and  all  other  property  connected  with  or  appertaining  to  such 
schools ; 

11.  To  cause  such  rules,  regulations,  ordinances  and  by-laws  to  be  published 
in  such  manner  and  form  as  they  may  deem  best  calculated  to  give  general  infor- 
mation ;  to  cause  one  copy  thereof,  together  with  a  copy  of  this  act,  to  be  kept  in 
each  of  said  schools ;  and  such  parts  thereof  as  relate  to  such  schools,  respectively, 
to  be  read  therein  at  least  once  during  each  quarter ; 

12.  Said  board  of  education  shall  in  all  respects  be  subject  to  the  visitation 
and  control  of  the  superintendents  of  common  schools  of  the  town,  county  and 
state,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  common  schools  in  this  state  are  subject. 

§  15.  Said  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to 
raise  from  time  to  time,  by  tax  upon  the  real  and  personal  estate  within  the 
bounds  of  said  union  district  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  for  the  ordinary 
taxes  of  said  village  or  for  town  or  county  charges,  such  sums  as  may  be  deter- 
mined, by  resolution  of  said  board,  to  be  necessary  for  any  and  all  the  purposes 
mentioned  in  the  last  preceding  section,  or  to  meet  any  deficiency  arising  from 
any  cause  connected  w  ith  the  subject  of  education  in  said  village ;  to  provide  for 
which,  power  shall  be  given  to  said  board  by  the  provisions  of  this  act,  the  laws 
relating  to  common  schools,  or  the  rules  and  regulations  of  the  superintendent  of 
common  schools.  Whenever  any  sum  of  money  shall  be  needed  by  any  primary 
district  for  any  of  the  objects  in  this  or  the  last  preceding  section  mentioned, 
except  for  teachers'  wages,  said  board  of  education  shall  cause  such  amount  to 
be  assessed,  levied  and  collected  from  the  property  of  such  district  by  the  same 
warrant,  in  addition  to  and  in  connection  with  the  tax  next  to  be  raised  for  the 
general  purposes  of  education  under  and  by  virtue  of  the  provisions  of  this  act, 
making  therefor  a  separate  column  in  said  tax  list.  The  treasurer  shall  keep  a 
separate  account  of  all  moneys  so  raised  for  such  primary  district,  and  said  board 
of  education  shall,  by  orders  on  such  specific  fund,  draw  out  such  moneys  only 
for  such  objects  and  in  favor  of  such  primary  district. 

Said  board  of  education  shall,  at  the  commencement  of  each  year,  make  an 
estimate,  by  the  best  means  in  their  power,  of  the  amount  of  money  which  will  be 
needed  for  all  the  purposes  of  education,  and  other  purposes  provided  for  by  this 
act,  over  and  above  the  moneys  to  be  received  from  the  town  superintendent  and 


398  LOCKPORT. 

from  tuition  fees,  and  shall  cause  the  same  to  he  raised  by  one  assessment  and 
warrant ;  and  not  more  than  two  taxes  for  such  purposes  shall  ever  be  raised  in 
one  year. 

The  amount  of  money  so  to  be  raised  in  any  one  year,  after  the  first  year,  shall 
not  be  less  than  the  amount  received  in  behalf  of  all  said  districts,  from  the  town 
superintendent,  for  the  year  next  preceding;  nor  more  than  four  times  that 
amount,  unless  such  greater  amount  shall  be  authorized  by  a  vote  of  the  taxable 
inhabitants  of  said  union  district,  at  a  regular  meeting  of  such  district. 

§  16.  Said  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  forth- 
with to  purchase  a  suitable  lot,  so  situated  as  best  to  convene  the  whole  of  said 
union  district,  not  to  exceed  in  cost  the  sum  of  twenty-five  hundred  dollars,  and 
procure  a  clear  title  thereof,  to  be  vested,  by  deed,  in  said  board  of  education  ; 
to  cause  said  lot  to  be  graded,  fenced  and  otherwise  properly  improved;  to  erect 
thereon  a  suitable  and  proper  building  or  buildings,  to  be  built  of  stone  or  brick, 
not  to  exceed  in  expense  the  sum  of  eight  thousand  dollars,  nor  to  cost  less  than 
five  thousand  dollars;  furnish  the  same  with  all  proper,  useful  and  necessary  fur- 
Diture,  apparatus  and  appendages;  as  soon  as  the  building  is  in  proper  condition, 
employ  a  sufficient  number  of  well  educated  teachers,  male  and  female,  and  cause 
a  school  to  be  commenced  therein,  to  be  called  "The  Lockport  Union  School," 
in  which  shall  be  taught  only  the  higher  branches  of  education. 

The  tuition  fee  in  said  union  school  shall  not  exceed  two  dollars  each  per  quar- 
ter for  pupils  whose  parents  or  guardians  reside  within  the  territory  of  said  union 
district;  for  all  other  pupils,  said  tuition  fee  shall  not  be  less  than  two  dollars 
nor  more  than  five  dollars  per  quarter.  No  tuition  fee  shall  thereafter  be  charged, 
nor  any  rate  bill  be  made  for  tuition  in  the  primary  schools,  but  the  same  shall 
be  free  schools. 

<  §  17.  Said  board  of  education  shall,  as  soon  as  practicable,  make  an  estimate 
of  the  amount  of  money  which,  in  their  opinion,  will  be  necessary  for  the 
purposes  in  the  last  section  specified,  and  also  for  such  purposes  specified  in 
section  fourteen  of  this  act  as  may  be  needed  or  required  for  the  first  year,  and 
shall  forthwith  assess,  levy  and  collect  the  same,  by  tax  upon  real  and  personal 
estate,  as  specified  in  section  fifteen  of  this  act.  They  shall,  for  this  and  all  other 
taxes  to  be  raised  by  them,  make  out  a  tax  list,  in  the  manner  and  form  in  which 
like  tax  lists  are  now  made  by  trustees  of  school  districts,  so  far  as  such  form  is 
applicable  ;  annex  thereto  a  warrant,  in  like  form,  signed  by  the  president  or  a 
majority  of  the  members  of  said  board,  and  deliver  the  same  to  the  collector; 
which,  when  so  made  and  signed,  shall  be  as  effectual,  to  all  intents  and  purposes, 
as  like  tax  lists  and  warrants  when  made  by  the  trustees  of  common  school  dis- 
tricts. Said  board  may,  in  respect  to  the  collection  of  all  taxes,  conform  to  the 
provisions  of  the  twenty-ninth,  thirtieth  and  thirty-first  sections  of  the  one 
hundred  and  eightieth  chapter  of  the  Session  Laws  of  one  thousand  eight  hundred 
and  forty-five,  and  require  the  collector  to  comply  with  the  provisions  of  said 
sections,  so  far  as  the  same  are  applicable.  Said  board  may  so  far  vary  from  the 
provisions  of  said  sections,  as  to  time  and  places,  as  to  render  them  applicable, 
and  may  make  such  warrants  returnable  at  sixty  or  ninety  days,  in  their  discretion, 
instead  of  thirty  days,  as  now  required  by  law  in  respect  to  such  warrants  made 
by  trustees  of  common  school  districts;  but  all  property  now  exempt,  by  section 
twenty-two,  title  five,  chapter  six,  part  third  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  from  execu- 
tion, shall  be  exempt  from  all  such  warrants. 

§  18.  All  moneys  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act,  and  all  moneys  by  law 
appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  district,  shall  he  paid  to  the  treasurer  of 
said  board,  who,  together  with  the  sureties  upon  his  official  bond,  shall  be  account- 
able therefor  to  said  board  of  education.  Said  treasurer  shall  not  pay  out  any 
of  such  moneys,  except  by  resolution  of  said  board,  and  upon  an  order  drawn  by 
the  president  and  certified  by  the  secretary,  to  be  so  drawn  in  pursuance  of  such 
resolution. 

§  19.  Said  board  of  education  shall  meet  for  the  transaction  of  business  as 
often  as  once  in  each  month,  and  may  adjourn  for  any  shorter  time.  Special 
meetings  may  be  called  by  the  president,  or,  in  his  absence  or  inability  to  act,  by 


LOCKPORT.  399 

the  secretary  or  any  other  member  of  the  board,  as  often  as  necessary,  by  firing 
personal  notice  to  each  member  of  the  board,  or  causing  a  written  or  printed 
notice  to  be  left  at  his  last  place  of  residence,  at  least  twenty-four  hours  before 
the  hour  of  meeting.  No  member  of  said  board  shall  receive  any  pay  or  compen- 
sation for  his  services.  It  shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  member  of  said  board,  or 
any  other  officer  of  either  of  said  districts,  to  become  a  contractor  for  building 
or  making  any  improvement  or  repairs  authorized  by  this  act,  or  be  in  any  manner 
directly  or  indirectly  interested,  either  as  principal,  partner  or  surety,  in  any 
such  contract.  All  contracts  made  in  violation  of  this  provision  shall  be 
absolutely  void,  and  the  person  so  violating  shall  forfeit  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars, 
to  be  prosecuted  for  and  recovered  by  said  board. 

§  20.  Instead  of  the  report  now  required  by  law  to  be  made  by  trustees  of 
school  districts  to  the  town  superintendent  of  common  schools,  the  trustee  so  be 
elected  for  each  primary  district  shall,  within  the  time  now  require*  by  law, 
make  such  report  to  said  board  of  education,  and  shall  therein  embrace  such  other 
and  further  matters  as  may  be  required  and  prescribed  by  said  board,  or  as  such 
trustee  may  think  the  interests  of  such  primary  district  or  school  may  require. 
Said  board  of  education  shall  annually,  between  the  first  of  January  and  the  first 
of  March  in  each  year,  make  to  the  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  a 
report  containing  all  such  matters,  relating  as  well  to  said  union  district  and 
union  school  as  to  said  primary  districts  and  their  schools,  as  is  now  or  shall 
hereafter  be  required  by  law,  or  the  regulations  of  the  superintendent  of  common 
schools,  to  be  reported  to  said  town  superintendent,  and  such  other  and  further 
matters  as  they  may  deem  advisable.  Such  report  shall  be  received,  by  said  town 
superintendent,  instead  of  the  reports  now  required  from  each  of  said  seven 
districts.     A  copy  of  such  report  shall  be  filed  with  the  secretary  of  said  board. 

§  21.  Said  board  of  education  shall,  from  time  to  time,  appoint  such  and  so 
many  members  of  their  board  as  they  may  deem  proper,  not  less  than  three  in 
number,  a  visiting  committee ;  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  visit  said  union  school 
and  each  of  said  primary  schools  as  often  as  once  in  each  quarter,  and  make  a 
report  in  writing  to  said  board,  showing  the  state  and  condition  of  each  school, 
school-house,  apparatus  and  appendages,  and  such  other  matters  as  said  board 
may  require  of  them,  and  such  suggestions  for  the  improvement  of  the  same 
as  they  may  deem  proper  and  advisable ;  such  reports  shall  be  filed  and  kept 
among  the  papers  of  said  board.  Such  board  may,  in  their  discretion,  cause  such 
reports,  or  any  parts  of  the  same  or  the  substance  thereof,  and  any  and  all  other 
matters  relating  to  said  schools,  to  be  published  in  such  form  as  they  may  deem 
advisable.  They  shall,  at  the  close  of  each  year,  publish  in  one  or  more  of  the 
village  newspapers  a  report  of  the  moneys  received  and  expended  by  them  during 
the  year,  and  such  other  matters  as  they  deem  advisable. 

§  22.  Whenever,  in  the  opinion  of  said  board,  the  interests  of  any  primary  dis- 
trict require  the  sale  or  exchange  of  the  school  lot  therein,  said  board  may  cause 
such  sale  or  exchange  to  be  made,  and  hold  the  proceeds  thereof  for  the  use  and 
benefit  of  such  primary  district. 

§  23.  The  title  of  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  hooks,  apparatus  and 
appurtenances,  and  all  other  school  property  in  this  act  mentioned,  shall  be  vested 
in  said  board  of  education ;  and  the  same,  while  used  for  or  appropriated  to 
schools  purposes,  shall  be  exempt  from  all  taxes  and  assessments,  and  shall  not 
be  liable  to  be  levied  upon  or  sold  by  virtue  of  any  warrant  or  execution.  Said 
board  of  education  in  their  corporate  capacity  shall  be  able  to  take,  hold  and 
dispose  of  any  real  or  personal  estate  transferred  to  it  by  gift,  grant,  bequest  or 
devise  for  the  use  of  said  schools  or  any  or  either  of  them ;  provided,  however, 
that  said  board  shall  not  have  power  to  sell,  grant,  dispose  of  or  incumber  said 
union  school  lot. 

§  24.  Every  officer  in  this  act  mentioned,  having  at  the  time  the  possession, 
custody,  care,  charge  or  control  of  any  property  belonging  to  said  schools  or 
any  or  either  of  them,  or  any  money  raised  by  the  provisions  of  this  act  or  provided 
by  law  for  the  purposes  of  education  in  said  village,  shall,  at  the  expiration  of 
his  term,  or  whenever  such  officer  shall  resign,  be  removed  from  office,  cease  to 


400  LOCKPORT. 

act,  or  his  office  be  otherwise  vacated,  transfer  all  such  property  and  pay  over  all 
such  money  to  the  board  of  education. 

§  25.  Every  resignation  of  officers  appointed  or  elected  under  this  act  shall  be 
made  to  the  board  of  education;  and  such  resignation  shall  have  no  force  or 
effect,  nor  in  any  degree  excuse  such  officer  from  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  until 
the  same  be  accepted  and  approved  by  a  resolution  of  said  board. 

§  26.  Any  such  officer  may  be  removed  from  office  for  any  official  misconduct 
or  neglect  of  official  duty  by  resolution  of  said  board,  two-thirds  of  the  members 
thereof  concurring.  Opportunity  shall  be  given  to  every  such  officer  to  be  heard 
in  his  defence  before  any  such  resolution  shall  be  adopted. 

§  27.  Every  person  appointed  or  elected  to  any  office  mentioned  in  this  act, 
who,  without  sufficient  cause,  shall  refuse  to  serve  therein,  shall  forfeit  the  sum 
of  ten  dollars ;  and  every  person  so  appointed  or  elected,  and  not  having  refused 
to  accept)*  who  shall  neglect  to  discharge  the  duties  of  such  office,  shall  forfeit 
the  sum  of  twenty  dollars  to  said  board  of  education.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of 
said  board  of  education  forthwith  to  prosecute  for  all  forfeitures  and  penalties 
under  this  act,  and  when  recovered  to  apply  the  same  to  the  purposes  of  educa- 
tion in  said  village.  All  officers  mentioned  in  this  act  shall  be  deemed  public 
officers,  within  the  intent  and  meaning  of  section  thirty-eight  of  title  six 
of  chapter  one,  part  four  of  the  Revised  Statutes,  and,  as  such,  liable  to  the 
penalty  therein  prescribed,  in  addition  to  the  penalty  in  this  section  before  pro- 
vided. 

§  28.  The  several  libraries  of  the  said  seven  districts  are  hereby  consolidated 
into  one.  Said  board  of  education  shall  cause  a  suitable  and  proper  room  to  be 
fitted  up  in  said  union  school  building,  and  furnished  with  necessary  and  suitable 
fixtures,  furniture,  apparatus  and  appendages,  and  transfer  said  library  thereto 
and  put  ii  under  the  charge  of  a  librarian.  They  shall  annually  allow  and  pay 
to  said  librarian  such  salary  as  in  their  opinion  shall  be  a  fair  and  reasonable 
compensation  for  his  services,  but  not  to  exceed  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars  in  any 
one  year.  They  shall  pass  such  by-laws  for  the  regulation  and  preservation  of 
said  library  and  for  the  discharge  of  the  duties  of  the  librarian  as  they  may 
think  necessary.  The  library  money  hereafter  to  be  received  in  behalf  of  said 
districts  shall  be  paid  by  the  town  superintendent  to  the  treasurer  of  said  board. 
Said  board  shall  expend  such  money  entirely  for  the  purchase  of  books  and  maps 
for  the  library. 

§  29.  Lands  of  residents  and  non-residents  of  said  districts  may  be  sold  by  said 
board  for  uncollected  taxes,  assessed  thereon  for  school  purposes  by  virtue  of  the 
provisions  of  this  act,  in  the  same  manner  and  by  like  proceedings  as  the  trustees 
of  said  village  adopt  to  sell  lands  for  unpaid  taxes  assessed  for  village  purposes, 
and  such  sales  shall  have  the  like  effect  as  sales  so  made  by  the  trustees  of  said 
village ;  or,  the  lands  of  residents  and  non-residents  of  said  districts  said  board 
may  cause  to  be  returned  to  the  county  treasurer,  in  the  same  manner  as  trustees 
of  common  school  districts  are  now  authorized  by  law  to  return  unoccupied  and 
unimproved  real  estate  of  non-residents  of  their  districts  for  unpaid  taxes  assessed 
thereon.  Said  county  treasurer  shall  pay  to  said  board  the  amount  of  such  taxes 
out  of  any  moneys  in  the  county  treasury  raised  for  contingent  expenses ;  and 
such  proceedings,  in  all  respects,  shall  thereafter  be  had  by  said  county  treasurer 
and  the  board  of  supervisors  of  the  county  of  Niagara,  in  relation  to  all  lands 
so  returned,  as  they  are  by  law  required  to  take  in  respect  to  unoccupied  and 
unimproved  lands  of  non-residents  when  so  returned  by  trustees  of  common 
school  districts ;  but  no  lands  shall  be  so  sold  or  returned  until  a  reasonable 
effort  shall  have  been  made  to  collect  such  taxes  by  warrant,  as  provided  in  sec- 
tion seventeen  of  this  act,  and  the  collector  shall  have  returned  that  he  cannot 
collect  the  same. 

§  30.  Said  board  of  education  may  cause  a  school  for  colored  children  to  be 
taught  in  said  village,  and  include  the  expenses  thereof  in  the  amount  so  to  be 
raised  annually  by  tax  for  contingent  expenses  and  other  purposes  of  education 
provided  for  in  this  act. 


LOCKPORT.  401 

§  31.  Said  board  of  education  may  organize  in  said  union  school  a  department 
for  the  instruction  of  teachers,  for  such  parts  of  the  year  and  under  such  rules 
and  regulations  as  they  may  by  their  by-laws  adopt  relative  thereto. 

§  32.  Said  board  of  education  may  at  any  time  hereafter,  whenever  in  their 
opinion  the  wants  and  interests  of  said  schools  shall  require  it,  establish  a  class  of 
so  many  schools,  intermediate  said  primary  and  union  schools,  as  they  may  deem 
advisable,  to  be  called  secondary  schools;  and  for  this  purpose  consolidate  such 
and  so  many  of  said  primary  districts  as  they  may  deem  advisable,  prescribe  the 
tuition  fees  and  course  of  studies  therein,  and  so  arrange  and  regulate  the  system 
of  instruction  in  all  of  said  schools  that  the  transfer  of  pupils  shall  thereafter  be 
from  the  primary  directly  into  the  secondary  and  thence  into  the  union  school ; 
and  for  this  purpose,  and  for  the  organization,  government  and  regulation  of  said 
secondary  schools,  said  board  shall  have  all  such  powers  as  are  hereinbefore 
conferred  upon  them  in  respect  to  said  primary  and  union  schools  and  their  dis- 
tricts and  property. 


[  Chap.  77,  Laws  of  1850.] 

§  2.  "  The  Board  of  Education  for  the  village  of  Lockport  "  is  hereby  autho- 
rized to  increase  the  rates  of  tuition  fees  in  the  union  school  under  its  charge  and 
to  graduate  the  same  according  to  the  branches  of  instruction  pursued. 

§  3.  Said  board  of  education  is  hereby  authorized  to  appoint  a  superintendent 
of  the  schools  under  its  charge,  with  such  powers  and  duties  and  compensation  as 
said  board  shall  prescribe. 

§  4.  From  and  after  the  first  day  of  April  next,  so  long  as  the  common  schools 
of  this  state  shall  be  free,  the  said  board  of  education  shall  cause  each  of  the 
secondary  schools  under  its  charge  to  be  taught  by  a  competent  male  teacher,  or 
a  male  and  female  teacher,  and  the  usual  common  school  studies  shall  be  free ; 
but  for  the  time  prior  to  the  said  first  day  of  April  next,  said  board  may  collect 
tuition  fees  for  instruction  therein,  as  well  as  in  the  union  school;  as  they  have  here- 
tofore done ;  and  such  studies  shall  be  taught  in  said  union  school  as  said  board 
may  prescribe. 

§  5.  Said  board  shall  not  raise  by  tax,  upon  the  property  in  the  union  school 
district,  any  money  for  the  salaries  of  teachers  in  the  union  school  district  which 
shall  accrue  after  the  first  day  of  April  next. 

§  6.  The  acts  and  doings  of  said  board  of  education,  in  accoi'dance  with  the 
provisions  of  their  act  of  incorporation,  since  the  act  entitled  "  An  act  establish- 
ing free  schools  throughout  the  state,"  passed  March  26,  1849,  took  effect,  aro 
hereby  ratified  and  confirmed. 

§  7.  The  public  money  which  shall  be  apportioned  to  the  districts  included  in 
the  said  union  school  district  shall  be  paid  to  said  board,  and  be  applied  by 
them  to  teachers'  wages,  in  the  several  schools  in  their  charge  in  said  district,  in 
proportion  to  the  average  number  of  scholars  pursuing  common  school  studies  in 
each  of  said  schools.  The  annual  report  of  the  receipts  and  expenditures,  required 
to  be  published  by  said  board,  shall  specify  all  sums  received,  and  from  whom, 
and  all  persons  to  whom  payments  were  made,  and  the  general  character  of  the 
demands  paid. 

Upon  the  application  of  said  board  of  education  to  "  the  regents  of  the  univer- 
sity of  the  State  of  New- York,"  said  regents  may  acknowledge  and  declare  said 
union  school  to  be  an  academy ;  and  it  shall  thereafter  be  an  academy,  subject 
to  and  to  be  governed  by  the  provisions  of  the  act  authorizing  said  union  school, 
and  subject  to  such  rules  and  regulations  as  said  regents  may  prescribe. 


[Code.]  51 


402  LYONS— MEDINA. 


DISTRICT  No.  6,  IN  LYONS,  WAYNE  COUNTY. 

Chapter  129,  Laws  of  1856,  creates  nine  persons  therein  named,  and  their  suc- 
cessors in  office,  as  trustees  of  District  No.  6,  a  corporation  by  the  name  of  "  Tho 
Board  of  Education  for  the  village  of  Lyons."  It  confers  upon  such  board  substan- 
tially the  same  powers  as  those  given  by  the  preceding  law  to  the  board  of  educa- 
tion for  the  village  of  Lockport,  and  conforms  so  closely  to  the  provisions  of  that  act 
as  to  render  it  unnecessary  for  the  purposes  of  the  general  reader  to  repeat  them. 
Those  charged  with  any  duty  under  it  will,  of  course,  consult  the  Session  Laws 
of  1856. 


MEDINA. 

[  Laws  of  1849,  chap.  286,  as  amended  by  chap.  381,  Laws  of  1850.  ] 

Section  1.  There  shall  hereafter  be  elected  in  school  district  number  twelve, 
formed  partly  out  of  the  town  of  Ridgeway  and  partly  out  of  the  town  of  Shelby, 
in  the  county  of  Orleans,  and  lying  principally  within  the  village  of  Medina,  in 
the  manner  now  provided  by  law,  three  trustees,  who  shall  respectively  hold  their 
offices  three  years.  Christopher  Whaley,  Silas  M.  Burroughs,  John  Ryan.  Daniel 
Starr,  Isaac  W.  Swan  and  Archibald  Servoss  are  hereby  appointed  trustees  of 
said  district,  and  shall  respectively  hold  said  office  as  follows,  namely:  the  term 
of  office  of  Christopher  Whaley  and  Silas  M.  Burroughs  shall  expire  at  the  same 
time  that  the  term  of  office  of  Roswell  Starr,  as  trustee  of  said  district,  shall 
expire ;  the  term  of  office  of  John  Ryan  and  Daniel  Starr  shall  expire  at  the 
same  time  that  the  term  of  office  of  Isaac  K.  Burroughs,  as  trustee  of  said  dis- 
trict, shall  expire;  and  the  term  of  office  of  Isaac  W.  Swan  and  Archibald  Servoss 
shall  expire  at  the  same  time  that  the  term  of  office  of  Nathan  Bancroft,  as  trustee 
of  said  district,  shall  expire. 

§  2.  The  trustees  of  said  district,  and  their  successors  in  office,  shall  constitute 
a  board  of  education  for  said  district ;  and,  for  the  purposes  of  this  act,  in  addition 
to  the  present  powers  and  duties  of  trustees,  are  hereby  constituted  a  body  politic 
and  corporate,  by  the  name  and  style  of  "  The  Board  of  Education  of  the  village 
of  Medina;"  and  said  corporation  shall  have  power  to  establish  and  organize  a 
classical  school  in  said  village,  to  be  known  by  the  name  of  "  The  Medina 
Academy,"  and  such  classical  school  shall  be  subject  to  all  laws  and  regulations 
applicable  to  other  incorporated  academies  of  this  state,  and  shall  be  entitled  to 
share  in  the  distribution  of  the  moneys  of  the  literature  fund,  upon  the  same  terms 
as  other  academies  of  this  state ;  and  the  regents  of  the  university  shall  recognize 
said  academy  as  such,  as  soon  as  the  required  sum'of  money  shall  be  expended  in 
buildings  and  competent  teachers  employed  therein. 

§  3.  Said  board  of  education  shall  appoint  one  of  their  number  president  of 
said  board,  who  shall  preside  at  the  meetings  of  said  board  when  present ;  when 
absent  a  president  pro  tempore  shall  be  appointed  in  his  stead.  They  shall  also 
appoint  one  of  their  number  secretary,  who  shall  record  all  the  acts,  doings  and 
resolutions  of  said  board ;  and  in  the  absence  of  the  secretary  a  secretary  pro 
tempore  shall  be  appointed  to  discharge  such  duties.  They  shall  also  appoint  a 
collector,  librarian  and  treasurer  of  said  district,  who  shall  respectively  hold  their 
offices  one  year  from  their  appointment,  and  until  others  are  appointed  in  their 
places,  unless  sooner  removed  by  said  board ;  such  collector,  librarian  and 
treasurer  shall  each,  within  ten  days  after  notice  of  their  appointment  in  writing, 
and  before  entering  upon  the  duties  of  their  office,  execute  and  deliver  to  said 
board  of  education  a  bond,  in  such  penalty  and  with  such  sureties  as  said  board 
may  require,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  office.     In 


MEDINA.  403 

case  such  bond  shall  not  be  given  within  ten  days  after  receiving  such  notice,  such 
office  shall  thereby  become  vacated,  and  said  board  of  education  shall  thereupon 
mike  an  appointment  to  supply  such  vacancy. 

§  4.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  fill  any  vacancy  which 
may  happen  by  reason  of  the  death  or  removal  from  the  said  district  of  any 
member  of  said  board,  and  the  officer  so  appointed  shall  hold  his  office  for  the 
unexpired  time  of  the  person  to  supply  whose  place  he  shall  he  so  appointed. 

§  5.  Said  board  of  education  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  suhject  to  all 
the  duties,  in  respect  to  said  district,  that  the  trustees  of  common  schools  now 
possess  or  are  subject  to,  and  such  other  powers  and  duties  as  are  given  or  imposed 
by  this  act. 

§  6.  The  taxable  inhabitants  of  said  district,  at  any  annual,  special  or  adjourned 
meeting  legally  held,  may  vote  to  raise  such  sum  of  money  as  they  shall  deem 
expedient  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  a  site  and  building  a  school-house  in  said 
district,  or  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  any  suitable  building  for  such  purpose, 
and  direct  the  trustees  to  cause  the  same  to  be  levied  and  raised  by  instalments, 
and  make  out  a  tax  for  the  collection  of  the  same  as  often  as  such  instalments 
shall  become  due ;  and  the  legal  voters  at  any  such  meeting  are  authorized  to  fix 
the  compensation  for  collecting  and  paying  over  to  the  said  board  of  education 
the  amount  so  levied. 

§  7.  The  inhabitants  of  said  district  shall  have  no  power  to  rescind  the  vote  to 
raise  such  sum  of  money,  at  any  subsequent  meeting,  unless  the  same  he  done 
within  ten  days  thereafter  ;  nor  shall  they  have  power  to  reduce  the  amount  of 
the  same  after  the  expiration  of  ten  days  from  the  time  the  tax  was  first  levied, 
but  may  remit  such  sum  as  shall  remain  unappropriated  after  paying  for  the  site 
and  erection  of  the  house  or  purchase  of  suitable  building. 

§  8.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  to  obtain  by  loan  the 
whole  or  any  part  of  the  money  legally  voted  by  said  district,  and  secure  the 
payment  of  the  same  by  their  official  bond. 

sj  9.  The  comptroller  of  this  state  is  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  loan  to 
the  said  board  of  education  such  sum  as  the  said  hoard  of  education  shall  certify 
to  said  comptroller  to  have  been  voted  by  the  inhabitants  of  said  district,  in 
pursuance  of  this  act,  not  exceeding  the  sum  of  five  thousand  dollars,  out  of  the 
moneys  in  the  treasury  belonging  to  the  capital  of  the  common  school  fund,  and 
for  the  purpose  of  purchasing  a  site  and  erecting  or  purchasing  a  suitable  building 
for  a  school-house  in  said  district ;  and  the  money  when  loaned  shall  be  charged 
upon  the  books  of  the  comptroller  to  said  district,  and  the  same  shall  be  paid  over 
to  said  board  of  education,  to  he  applied  by  them  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing 
a  site  and  erecting  or  purchasing  a  school-house  for  said  district. 

§  10.  The  sum  so  loaned  shall  be  paid  to  the  comptroller  of  this  state,  in  annual 
instalments  thereafter,  as  determined  by  the  vote  of  said  district  raising  such  sum 
of  money,  with  annual  interest  thereon. 

§  11.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
sell  at  public  auction,  to  the  highest  bidder,  the  school-house  and  site  thereof 
belonging  to  said  district,  by  giving  public  notice,  to  be  posted  in  ten  public  places 
in  said  district  ten  days  previous  to  such  sale,  and  apply  the  proceeds  arising 
from  such  sale  towards  purchasing  a  site  and  erecting  a  school-house  in  said 
district,  or  to  such  other  purpose  as  said  district  shall  direct;  such  sale  may  be 
made  upon  such  terms  of  credit  as  said  board  of  education  shall  determine  upon, 
and  a  bond  and  mortgage  taken  by  said  board  for  the  whole  or  any  part  of  the 
purchase  money  or  price  for  which  said  site  and  house  may  be  sold,  and  such 
bond  and  mortgage  may  be  sold  and  assigned  by  said  board  at  par,  for  money  to 
r»e  applied  by  them  as  herein  provided. 

§  12.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
make  such  by-laws  and  regulations  as  they  may  deem  necessary  to  secure  the 
prosperity,  order  and  government  of  said  school,  and  divide  the  same  into  primary 
and  higher  departments,  and  regulate  the  transfer  of  scholars  from  one  depart- 
ment to  the  other,  and  provide  suitable  instructors  for  each  department,  direct 
what  text  books  shall  be  used  in  the  same,  purchase  fuel  and  other  necessaries 


404  MEDINA. 

for  the  use  of  the  school  or  schools  in  said  district,  and  all  contracts  made  by 
them  in  their  official  capacity  shall  be  binding  upon  them  and  their  successors 
in  office ;  to  fix  and  regulate  the  terms  of  tuition  fees  in  said  primary  and  other 
higher  branches  in  said  school  or  schools ;  to  sue  for  and  collect  in  their  corpo- 
rate name  an}7  sum  of  money  due  to  said  district;  to  receive  and  apply  to  the 
uses  of  said  school  or  schools,  or  any  department  thereof,  any  gift,  legacy,  be- 
quest or  annuities  given  or  bequeathed  to  said  board,  and  apply  the  same  accord- 
ing to  the  instructions  of  the  donor  or  testator ;  to  take  and  hold  any  real  estate 
given  or  bequeathed  to  said  board  for  the  purposes  of  said  school  or  schools,  or 
any  department  thereof,  and  apply  the  same,  or  the  interest  or  proceeds  thereof, 
according  to  the  terms  and  instructions  of  the  donor  or  testator;  to  have  in  all 
respects  the  superintendence,  supervision,  management  and  control  of  said 
school  or  schools,  or  any  department  thereof,  and  to  hire,  pay  and  discharge 
any  teacher  or  teachers  employed  by  them  in  said  school  or  department  thereof. 

^  13.  Said  board  of  education  shall  in  all  respects  be  subject  to  the  restrictions 
and  control  of  the  superintendents  of  common  schools  of  the  town,  county  and 
state,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  common  schools  in  this  state  are  subject. 

§  14.  Said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  and  are  hereby  authorized  to 
receive  into  said  academy,  and  cause  to  be  instructed  therein,  any  pupil  or  pupils 
residing  in  or  out  of  said  district,  and  to  regulate  and  establish  the  terms  of 
tuition  fees  of  such  resident  or  non-resident  pupils;  and  said  board  of  education 
shall  have  power  to  regulate  the  tuition  fees  and  rates  of  charges  for  instruction 
in  the  higher  English  and  classical  departments  of  said  academy,  and  shall  have 
power  to  make  such  application  of  the  money  raised  for  the  support  of  common 
schools  in  said  district,  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages,  as  said  board  shall 
determine,  and  may  divide  and  apportion  the  same,  in  such  manner  as  said  board 
shall  deem  best,  to  pay  the  salaries  of  teachers  employed  in  said  academy,  or  the 
elementary  English  schools  connected  therewith  or  maintained  in  said  district 
under  their  supervision.  The  rates  of  tuition  in  the  elementary  English  branches, 
in  the  schools  maintained  in  said  district,  shall  be  subject  to  the  general  laws 
relating  to  common  schools;  and,  after  applying  such  portion  of  the  money 
received  in  said  district  as  said  board  shall  determine,  towards  the  support  of 
such  elementary  English  departments,  such  sum,  not  to  be  less  than  one-half  of 
all  the  moneys  received  in  said  district  for  the  support  of  common  schools 
therein,  the  additional  sum  required  to  pay  teachers''  wages  and  provide  fuel  and 
other  contingent  expenses  necessary  to  the  support  of  such  elementary  schools, 
shall  be  estimated,  assessed,  collected  and  applied  in  the  manner  provided  in 
chapter  one  hundred  and  forty  and  four  hundred  and  four  of  the  Session  Laws  of 
eighteen  hundred  and  forty-nine,  or  in  such  other  manner  as  shall  be  hereafter 
provided  by  law  for  the  support  of  common  schools. 

§  15.  All  moneys  raised  in  said  district  for  the  purposes  of  said  school,  and  all 
moneys  to  be  received  by  such  district  from  the  common  school  fund  or  other 
source,  shall  be  annually  paid  to  the  said  board  of  education,  and  be  applied  by 
them  for  the  uses  of  said  school  or  schools  according  to  law. 

§  16.  The  members  of  said  board  of  education,  before  receiving  any  moneys 
belonging  to  said  district,  shall  severally  execute  to  the  town  superintendent  of 
common  schools  of  the  town  of  Ridgeway  their  separate  bonds,  with  two  suffi- 
cient sureties,  to  be  approved  by  said  town  superintendent,  in  a  penalty  at  least 
double  the  amount  to  be  expended  by  them  for  the  benefit  of  said  school  during 
the  next  ensuing  year,  conditioned  that  such  trustee  giving  such  bond  will  faith- 
fully account  for  the  expenditure  of  all  moneys  he  shall  receive  for  said  district, 
and  pay  over  the  balance  remaining  in  his  hands  at  the  time  of  the  expiration  of 
his  office  to  the  other  trustees ;  and  the  district  at  any  legal  meeting  thereof  may 
require  the  penalty  of  such  bond  to  be  increased,  or  additional  security  to  be 
given  by  either  or  all  the  trustees,  if  they  shall  deem  the  same  insufficient;  and 
any  trustee,  treasurer  of  said  district,  or  member  of  said  board,  who  shall  apply 
any  moneys  belonging  to  said  district  to  his  own  use,  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of 
embezzlement. 


LODI— OWEGO— NEWBURGH.  405 

LODI  AND  OWEGO. 
[  Laws  of  1846,  chap.  207.  ] 

Section  1.  The  trustees  of  school  district  number  one,  formed  from  the  towns 
of  Persia  and  Perrysburgh,  in  the  county  of  Cattaraugus,  and  the  town  of  Col- 
lins,  in  the  county  of  Erie,  known  as  the  "  Lodi  union  school  district,"  are 
hereby  authorized,  if  the  inhabitants  of  said  district  shall  at  any  regular  school 
district  meeting  so  direct,  to  make  thereafter,  and  until  the  said  inhabitants  shall 
in  like  manner  otherwise  direct,  separate  and  distinct  rate  bills  for  the  payment 
of  the  wages  of  the  teachers  in  the  primary  and  in  the  higher  departments  of  the 
school  kept  in  the  said  district;  provided  that  the  manner  in  which  such  rate 
bills  shall  be  made  shall  have  been  determined  by  such  regular  school  district 
meeting  aforesaid. 

§  2.  The  provisions  of  the  preceding  section  of  this  act  shall  also  apply  to  school 
district  number  one,  in  the  village  of  Owego,  in  the  county  of  Tioga,  so  far  as  the 
same  shall  be  applicable  to  said  district. 


NEWBURGH. 
[Laws  of  1852,  chap.  156.] 

Section  1.  Every  district  or  common  school  located  in  the  village  of  Newburgh, 
including  the  "Newburgh  High  School,"  and  every  school  which  may  hereafter 
be  located  in  said  village  under  this  act,  shall  be  free  to  all  children  between  the 
ages  of  four  and  twenty-one  years  residing  in  said  village. 

§  2.  All  that  part  of  the  town  of  Newburgh  included  within  the  bounds  of  the 
corporation  of  the  village  of  Newburgh  shall  hereafter  constitute  one  common 
school  district.  There  shall  be  elected  in  said  village  nine  trustees  of  common 
schools,  as  soon  after  the  passage  of  this  act  as  the  trustees  of  the  village  can 
order  an  election  for  that  purpose,  after  giving  two  weeks'  notice  in  all  the  papers 
of  said  village  of  the  time  and  place  of  holding  such  election.  The  nine  trustees 
then  elected,  and  their  successors  in  office,  shall  constitute  a  board,  to  be  styled 
"The  Board  of  Education  of  the  village  of  Newburgh,"  which  shall  be  a  corporate 
body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  upon  them  by  this  act. 
The  term  of  office  of  three  of  said  trustees  shall  expire  on  the  second  Wednesday 
after  the  annual  charter  election  in  said  village,  in  the  year  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  fifty-three :  the  term  of  three  others  of  said  trustees  shall  expire 
on  the  second  Wednesday  after  the  annual  charter  election  in  the  year  one  thou- 
sand eight  hundred  and  fifty-four,  and  the  term  of  the  remaining  three  on  the 
'econd  Wednesday  after  the  annual  charter  election  in  the  year  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty-five.  The  term  of  office  of  the  several  members  of  said 
board  shall  be  determined  by  lot  at  the  first  meeting  of  said  board  after  their 
election. 

§  3.  The  title  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  books,  apparatus  and 
appurtenances,  and  all  other  school  property  in  said  village  in  this  act  mentioned, 
shall  be  vested  in  said  board  of  education,  and  the  same  shall  not  be  subject  to 
taxation  for  any  purpose;  and  the  said  board  of  education,  in  its  corporate  capa- 
city, may  take,  hold  and  dispose  of  any  real  or  personal  estate  transferred  to  it 
by  gift,  grant,  bequest  or  devise,  for  the  use  of  the  common  schools  in  said  vil- 
lage (except  that  no  real  estate  held  by  said  board  for  school  purposes  shall  be 
sold  or  disposed  of  without  the  consent  of  the  trustees  of  the  village  first  obtained, 
as  hereinafter  provided). 

§  4.  There  shall  be  elected  at  the  annual  charter  election  of  said  village,  in 
each  year  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  in  the  same  manner  as  and  upon  the  same 
ticket  with  the  trustees  and  other  officers  of  said  village,  three  trustees  of  com- 


406  NEWBURGIL 

nion  schools,  to  supply  the  places  of  those  whose  terms  are  about  to  expire.  The 
term  of  office  of  all  trustees  of  common  schools,  elected  pursuant  to  this  act 
(except  those  first  elected  ),  shall  commence  on  the  second  Wednesday  after  such 
charter  election,  and  continue  three  years. 

§  5.  The  trustees  of  said  village  may  appoint  trustees  of  common  schools  to 
fdl  vacancies  which  may  occur  in  said  hoard  of  education  from  any  other  cause 
than  the  expiration  of  the  term  of  office  of  those  elected,  and  the  removal  from 
the  village  shall  be  deemed  a  resignation  of  the  office  of  any  trustee  of  common 
schools.  The  trustees  so  appointed  shall  hold  their  office  till  the  second  Wed- 
nesday after  the  next  annual  election ;  and  at  each  annual  election  there  shall  be 
elected  a  trustee  to  supply  the  place  of  any  person  so  appointed,  or  to  supply  any 
vacancy  then  existing,  and  the  person  thus  elected  shall  serve  out  the  unexpired 
term. 

§  6.  Any  trustee  of  common  schools  in  said  village,  elected  under  this  act,  may 
be  removed  from  office  by  the  trustees  of  said  village  for  official  misconduct. 
But  a  written  copy  of  the  charges  against  such  trustee  shall  be  served  upon  him, 
and  he  shall  be  allowed  an  opportunity  to  refute  any  such  charge  of  misconduct 
before  removal. 

§  7.  The  first  meeting  of  the  board  of  education  shall  be  on  the  second  Wed- 
nesday next  after  their  election,  and  the  annual  meeting  of  the  board,  there- 
after, shall  be  on  the  second  Wednesday  next  after  the  annual  charter  election. 
A  majority  of  the  board  shall  form  a  quorum,  and  be  competent  to  transact  any 
business  of  said  board.  At  the  annual  meeting  of  the  board  they  shall  elect  one 
of  their  number  president  of  the  board,  and  whenever  he  shall  be  absent  a  presi- 
dent pro  tempore  may  be  appointed.  The  said  trustees  of  common  schools  shall 
receive  no  compensation  for  their  services. 

§  8.  The  said  board  shall  appoint  a  clerk,  who  may  be  one  of  their  number, 
who  shall  hold  his  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board,  and  whose  compensa- 
tion shall  be  fixed  by  the  board.  The  said  clerk  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  pro- 
ceedings of  the  board,  and  perform  such  other  duties  as  the  board  may  prescribe  ; 
the  said  record,  or  a  transcript  thereof  certified  by  the  president  and  clerk,  shall 
be  received  in  all  courts  as  prima  facie  evidence  of  facts  therein  set  forth ;  and 
such  records,  and  all  the  books,  vouchers,  accounts  and  papers  of  said  board, 
shall  at  all  times  be  subject  to  the  inspection  of  the  trustees  of  said  village,  and 
of  any  committee  thereof. 

§  9.  The  trustees  of  said  village  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty, 
to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  to  be  levied  equally  upon  all  the  real  and  per- 
sonal property  in  said  village  which  shall  be  liable  for  the  ordinary  village  taxes, 
such  sum  or  sums  of  money  as  the  board  of  education  shall  deem  necessary  for 
any  or  all  the  following  purposes : 

1.  To  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites  for  school-houses; 

2.  To  build,  purchase,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses, 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances ; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages ; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  pay  the  contingent  expenses  of  free  schools,  and  the 
expense  of  school  libraries  of  said  village; 

5.  To  pay  the  wages  of  teachers,  due  after  the  application  of  the  public  school 
moneys  and  all  other  moneys  received  by  said  board  or  under  their  control,  and 
which  may  by  law  be  appropriated  and  provided  for  that  purpose.  And  the 
trustees  of  said  village  are  authorized  and  directed,  when  necessary,  to  raise  by 
loan,  in  anticipation  of  the  taxes,  the  moneys  so  to  be  raised,  collected  and  levied 
as  aforesaid.  The  taxes,  to  be  levied  as  aforesaid  and  collected  by  virtue  of  this 
act,  shall  be  collected  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner  as  other  village 
taxes. 

§  10.  All  moneys  to  be  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  all 
school  moneys  by  law  appropriated  to  and  provided  for  said  village,  shall  be  paid 
to  the  treasurer  of  the  village  of  Newburgh,  who,  together  with  the  sureties  upon 
his  official  bond,  shall  be  accountable  therefor  in  the  same  manner  as  for  other 


NEWBUBGH.  407 

moneys  of  said  village;  the  said  treasurer  shall  lie  liable  to  the  same  penalties 
for  any  official  misconduct  in  relation  to  other  moneys  in  said  village.  Bach 
moneys  shall  be  deposited  with  such  treasurer  to  the  credit  of  said  board  of  edu- 
cation, and  shall  be  drawn  only  by  a  resolution  of  said  board,  by  drafts  drawn 
by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the  clerk,  payable  to  the  order  of  tlie  per- 
son or  persons  entitled  to  receive  such  moneys;  and  said  treasurer  shall  keep  the 
funds  received  by  him,  under  this  act,  separate  and  distinct  from  any  other  funds. 
§  11.  The  said  board  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  its  duty: 

I.  To  establish  and  organize,  in  said  village,  such  and  so  many  free  schools 
(including  the  common  schools  and  the  Newburgh  high  school  exisiting  therein), 
and  a  school  for  colored  children,  as  said  board  shall  deem  requisite  and  expedi- 
ent, and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same  at  its  discretion ; 

2  To  hire  school-houses  and  rooms  for  the  purpose  of  free  schools,  and  im- 
prove them ; 

3.  To  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses  and  appurtenances,  as  they  may 
deem  advisable ; 

4.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages,  and  to  defray  their  contingent  expenses,  and  the  expense 
of  the  school  libraries ; 

5.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses,  out-houses, 
books,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  to  see  that  the  ordinances  of  the  trustees 
of  the  village  in  relation  thereto  are  observed ; 

6.  To  contract  with,  license  and  employ  all  necessary  teachers,  and  at  their 
pleasure  to  remove  them ; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  moneys  appropriated  and 
provided  by  law  for  that  purpose,  so  far  as  the  same  shall  be  sufficient,  and  the 
residue  thereof  from  the  money  authorized  to  be  raised  for  that  purpose,  by  sec- 
tion nine  of  this  act,  by  tax  upon  the  village; 

8.  To  defray  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  the  board,  including  an 
annual  salary  to  the  clerk,  provided  the  account  of  such  expenses  shall  first  be 
audited  and  allowed  by  the  trustees  of  the  village; 

9.  To  expend  all  moneys  raised  by  this  act  for  building  school-houses,  pur- 
chasing sites,  and  other  purposes  for  which  the  same  may  be  raised,  in  such 
manner  as  they  may  deem  proper ; 

10.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision  and  management 
of  the  common  schools  in  said  village,  and  from  time  to  time  to  adopt,  alter, 
modify  and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  rules  and  regulations  for  their 
organization,  government  and  instruction,  for  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their 
transfer  from  one  school  to  another,  for  their  advancement  from  class  to  class,  as 
their  degree  of  scholarship  may  warrant,  and,  generally,  for  the  promotion  of 
their  good  order,  prosperity  and  public  utility; 

II.  Whenever,  in  the  opinion  of  the  board,  it  may  be  advisable  to  sell  any  of  the 
school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  to  report  the  same  to  the  trustees  of  the  village,  and, 
with  the  consent  of  the  trustees  of  the  village,  to  sell  and  dispose  of  such  school- 
houses,  lots  or  site  to  the  best  possible  advantage; 

12.  To  determine  and  certify  to  the  trustees  of  the  village,  on  or  before  the  first 
day  of  February  in  each  year,  the  sums  in  their  opinion  necessary  or  proper  to 
be  raised  under  the  ninth  section  of  this  act,  specifying  the  sums,  to  be  for  the 
year  commencing  on  the  first  day  of  March  thereafter,  for  each  of  the  purposes 
therein  mentioned  and  the  reasons  therefor. 

§  12.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  a  regular  meeting,  at  least  once  in  each 
quarter,  and  shall  appoint  at  such  meetings  one  or  more  committees,  each  to 
consist  of  not  less  than  two  of  their  number,  to  visit  all  the  schools  in  said 
village,  and  such  committee  shall  visit  all  said  schools  at  least  twice  in  each 
quarter. 

§  13.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  allow  the  children  of 
persons  not  resident  within  the  village  to  attend  any  of  the  free  schools  of  said 
village,  under  the  care  and  control  of  said  board,  upon  such  terms  as  said  board 
shall  by  resolution  prescribe,  fixing  the  tuition  which  shall  be  paid  therefor. 


408  NEWBURGH. 

§  14.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  in  all  their  expenditures  and  contracts, 
to  have  reference  to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  subject  to  their  order 
during  the  current  year,  and  not  to  exceed  that  amount. 

§  15.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  be  trustees  of  the  school  library  or 
libraries  in  said  village,  and  all  the  provisions  of  law  which  now  are  or  hereafter 
may  be  passed  relative  to  district  school  libraries  shall  apply  to  said  board  ;  they 
shall  also  be  vested  with  the  same  discretion  as  to  the  disposition  of  the  moneys, 
appropiated  by  any  law  of  this  state  for  the  purchase  of  libraries,  which  is  therein 
conferred  upon  the  inhabitants  of  school  districts.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said 
board,  in  their  discretion,  to  provide  a  library  room  or  rooms  in  the  several  schools 
in  said  village,  and  the  necessary  furniture  therefor.  The  clerk  of  the  board  shall 
be  the  general  librarian.  The  board  shall  also  appoint  one  or  more  librarians  to 
have  the  care  of  the  books,  and  to  superintend  the  letting  out  and  return  thereof. 
The  several  local  librarians  shall  from  time  to  time  inform  the  general  librarian 
of  the  state  and  condition  of  their  libraries;  and  the  said  board,  or  the  general 
librarian  under  the  direction  of  said  board,  may  make  all  purchases  of  books 
for  the  libraries  and  provide  for  their  equitable  distribution  among  the  several 
schools,  and  exchange  or  cause  to  be  repaired  the  damaged  books  belonging 
thereto,  and  also  to  sell  any  books  which  may  be  deemed  useless  or  of  improper 
character,  and  apply  .the  proceeds  to  the  purchase  of  other  books  for  said 
libraries,  and  unite  the  libraries  so  as  to  have  but  one,  should  they  deem  it  best 
so  to  do. 

§  16.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  at  least  twenty  days  before  the  annual 
charter  election  in  each  year,  to  prepare  and  report  to  the  trustees  of  the  village 
a  true  and  correct  statement  of  the  receipts  and  disbursements  of  moneys  under 
and  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  this  act  during  the  preceding  year,  in  which 
account  shall  be  stated,  under  appropriate  heads: 

1.  The  moneys  raised  by  the  trustees  of  the  village  under  the  ninth  section  of 
this  act ; 

2.  The  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  the  village  from  the  county 
treasurer ; 

3.  The  moneys  received  by  the  board  under  the  third  section  of  this  act ; 

4.  All  other  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer,  subject  to  the  order  of  the  board, 
specifying  the  sources ; 

5.  The  manner  in  which  such  sums  of  moneys  shall  have  expended,  specifying 
the  amount  paid  under  each  head  of  expenditure ; 

And  the  said  board  shall  cause  the  same  to  be  published,  in  at  least  two  papers 
published  in  said  village,  ten  days  before  such  election. 

§  17.  The  trustees  of  the  said  village  shall  have  the  power  to  pass  such  ordi- 
nances and  regulations  as  the  said  board  of  education  may  report  as  necessary 
and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and  preservation  of  the  school- 
houses,  lots,  sites,  appurtenances  and  appendages,  libraries,  and  all  necessary 
property  belonging  to  or  connected  with  the  schools  in  said  village;  and  to 
impose  proper  penalties  for  the  violation  thereof,  subject  to  the  restrictions  and 
limitations  contained  in  the  act  to  incorporate  the  said  village;  and  all  such 
penalties  shall  be  collected  in  the  same  manner  that  the  penalties  for  the  violation 
of  the  village  ordinances  are  by  law  collected,  and,  when  collected,  shall  be  paid 
to  the  treasurer  of  the  village,  and  be  subject  to  the  order  of  the  board  of  educa- 
tion, in  the  same  manner  as  other  moneys  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of 
this  act. 

§  18.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees,  within  fifteen  days  after  receiving  the 
certificate  of  the  board  of  education,  required  by  the  eleventh  sectjon  of  tins' act, 
of  the  sums  necessary  or.proper  to  be  raised  under  the  ninth  section  of  this  act,' 
to  certify  to  said  board  of  education  that  the  amount  will  be  raised  bv  them  for  the 
year,  commencing  on  the  first  of  March  thereafter,  for  the  purpose  mentioned  in  said 
ninth  section,  distinguishing  between  the  amount  to  be  raised  for  teachers'  wages 
and  contingent  expenses,  and  the  amount  to  be  raised  for  the  repair  of  school- 
houses,  which  amounts  shall  be  subject  to  the  disposal  of  the  board  of  education. 

§  19.  All  moneys  required  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act,  or  received  by  the 


NEWTOWN.  405 

said  village  for  or  on  account  of  common  schools,  except  such  sums  as  are  raited 
for  the  erection  of  school-houses  and  purchase  of  sites  therefor,  shall  be  deposited 
for  the  safe  keeping  thereof  with  the  treasurer  of  said  village,  to  the  credit  of 
said  board  of  education,  and  shall  be  drawn  out,  in  pursuance  of  a  resolution  <-r 
resolutions  of  the  said  board,  by  drafts  drawn  by  the  president  and  countersigned 
by  the  clerk  of  said  village,  payable  to  the  order  of  the  person  or  poisons  entitled 
to  receive  such  moneys  ;  ami  said  treasurer  shall  keep  the  funds,  authorized  by 
this  act  to  be  received  by  him,  separate  and  distinct  from  any  other  fund  which 
he  is  or  may  by  law  be  authorized  to  receive. 

§  20.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  clerk  of  said  village,  immediately  after  the 
election  of  any  person  as  a  trustee  of  common  schools,  personally  or  in  writing  to 
notify  him  of  his  election,  and  if  any  such  person  shall  not,  within  ten  days  after 
receiving  such  notice  of  his  election,  take  and  subscribe  the  constitutional  oath, 
and  file  the  same  with  the  clerk  of  said  village,  the  trustees  of  said  village  may 
consider  it  a  refusal  to  serve,  and  proceed  to  supply  the  vacancy  occasioned  by 
such  refusal ;  and  the  person  so  refusing  shall  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  village 
treasurer,  for  the  benefit  of  the  tuition  fund,  a  penalty  of  ten  dollars. 

§  21.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  several  district  schools  in  the  village  of  New- 
burgh,  within  three  months  from  the  passage  of  this  act,  to  transfer  and  convey 
to  said  board  of  education  all  school-houses,  sites,  lots  and  all  other  school  pro- 
perty, of  whatever  name  and  description,  and  to  place  in  the  care  of  the  board  of 
education  all  school  district  records,  account  books,  vouchers,  contracts,  papers 
and  other  school  property;  and  the  said  school  officers  of  the  said  village,  and  the 
several  school  districts  thereof,  shall  continue  in  office  until  the  unfinished  busi- 
ness of  said  districts  shall  have  been  finally  closed  up  and  settled,  not  exceeding 
three  months  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  with  all  the  power  and  duties  now  by 
law  imposed  upon  them,  for  the  purpose  of  closing  such  unfinished  business. 

§  22.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  annually  make  a  report  of  the  number 
of  children,  residing  in  said  village,  to  the  superintendent  of  common  schools  in 
the  town  of  Newburgh,  in  the  form  and  within  the  time  required  by  law  of  trus- 
tees of  common  school  districts;  and  the  said  superintendent  shall  pay  over,  whei> 
received,  to  the  said  board  of  education,  the  public  moneys  apportioned  to  said 
school  district  ( which  district  in  said  apportionment  shall  be  considered  as  three 
districts ),  to  be  by  them  applied  under  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  23.  The  act  entitled  "  An  act  to  establish  a  high  school  at  Newburgh,"  passed 
April  23,  1829,  and  all  other  acts  and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  with  this  act,  are 
hereby  repealed. 


NEWTOWN, 
f  Laws  of  1850,  chap.  60.  ] 

Section  1.  School  district  number  three,  in  the  town  of  Newtown,  in  the  county 
of  Queens,  shall  form  a  permanent  school  district,  and  shall  not  be  subject  to 
alteration  by  the  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  for  the  town  in  which 
said  district  is  situated. 

§  2.  The  said  district  shall  be  under  the  direction  of  a  board,  to  be  styled  "  The 
Board  of  Education,"  which  board  shall  consist  of  five  members,  three  or  more 
of  whom  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business.  John  B. 
Reboul,  Daniel  R.  Remsen,  Roe  H.  Smith,  Nathaniel  Filbey  and  Albert  0.  Witte- 
more  shall  compose  the  first  board  of  education,  and  shall  hold  their  office  from 
one  to  five  years,  that  is  to  say,  one  shall  go  out  of  office  in  each  year,  and  in  the 
order  in  which  their  names  stand  recorded  in  this  section. 

§  3.  At  the  annual  meeting  of  said  district,  in  each  year,  there  shall  be  elected 
for  five  years  one  member  of  said  board  of  education,  who  shall  be  a  resident 
and  taxable  inhabitant  of  said  district.  Said  election,  and  all  other  elections 
provided  for  by  this  act,  shall  be  held  by  three  inspectors,  who  shall  be  appointed 
by  the  board  of  education  at  least  thirty  days  preceding  such  election,  and  shall 

[Code.]  52 


410  NEWTOWN. 

be  by  ballot,  and  conducted  in  the  same  manner  as  the  annual  election  of  village 
officers. 

§  4.  The  said  board  of  education  may  make  all  necessary  by-laws  for  their 
government ;  they  shall  liave  the  entire  control  and  management  of  all  the  common 
schools  within  the  said  district,  and  all  the  property  belonging  to  the  same;  and 
they  shall  have  and  possess,  within  the  said  district,  all  the  rights,  powers  and 
authority  of  town  superintendent  of  common  schools,  and  they  shall  provide  for 
keeping  a  school  in  said  district  at  least  six  months  in  each  year,  and  as  much 
longer  as  may  he  practicable.  They  may  appoint  a  collector,  with  all  the  powers 
and  duties  of  a  district  collector,  or  may  employ  the  town  or  village  collector  for 
that  purpose;  and  such  collector  shall  collect  and  pay  over  the  school  moneys 
assessed  upon  said  district  to  the  treasurer  of  the  board  of  education,  in  the  same 
manner  and  under  the  same  conditions  as  is  imposed  by  the  laws  of  the  town  or 
village  of  which  he  is  such  collector.  They  shall  require  two  of  the  members  of 
said  board  to  visit  each  school  in  said  district  at  least  once  in  each  week,  to 
render  such  assistance  to  the  teachers  and  advice  to  the  pupils  as  may  be  neces- 
sary, and  to  see  that  the  regulations  are  rigidly  adhered  to. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to 
raise  a  sum,  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars,  by  tax  on  said  district,  to  be 
levied  and  collected  in  the  same  manner  as  taxes  are  authorized  by  law  to  be 
levied  and  collected  in  the  towns  of  this  state;  and  said  board  of  education  are 
also  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to  raise  the  sum  of  three  thousand  and 
five  hundred  dollars,  by  a  loan,  which  sums  are  to  be  expended  in  the  erection 
of  a  school-house,  iu  said  district,  and  furniture  for  the  same ;  such  loan  to  be 
secured  by  a  bond  and  a  mortgage  upon  the  public  school  property  of  said  district, 
which  bond  and  mortgage  shall  be  executed  by  said  board  of  education,  in  their 
official  capacity,  under  their  hands  and  a  common  seal  to  be  provided  by  them. 
Said  loan  shall  be  paid  off  in  annual  instalments  of  five  hundred  dollars  each; 
and  the  first  of  said  instalments  shall  be  paid  in  three  years  after  the  date  of  said 
bond  and  mortgage.  Said  board  is  also  authorized  and  empowered  to  raise  such 
additional  sum,  from  time  to  time,  by  tax  on  said  district,  to  be  levied  and  col- 
lected in  the  same  manner  as  taxes  are  authorized  by  law  to  be  levied  and  col- 
lected in  towns  of  this  state,  as  may  be  necessary  to  pay  the  accruing  interest 
on  said  loan  and  the  said  instalments  thereof,  and  also  such  amount  as  they  may 
deem  proper  for  fees  for  collection,  not  exceeding  five  per  cent  on  the  amount. 
(  As  ame?ided  by  chap.  398  of  1851.) 

§  6.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  levy 
and  collect  by  tax,  in  each  year,  upon  all  the  taxable  property  and  inhabitants, 
such  sum  as  may  be  necessary,  not  exceeding  in  amount  one-fifth  of  one  per  cent 
on  the  value  of  such  taxable  property,  as  the  same  shall  be  assessed  by  the 
assessors  of  the  town  of  Newtown ;  and  the  said  board  shall  add,  to  their  warrant 
for  collection  of  such  taxes,  such  amount  as  they  may  deem  proper  for  fees  for 
collection,  not  exceeding  five  per  cent  on  the  amount. 

§  7.  The  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  of  the  town  of  Newtown  shall 
pay  over  to  the  treasurer  of  the  board  of  education  all  the  public  moneys  to 
which  said  district  number  three  shall  be  entitled,  for  school  purposes. 

§  8.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  call  an  annual  district  meeting,  at  such 
time  in  the  year  as  they  may  think  proper,  and  submit  thereto  a  full  report,  in 
writing,  of  their  doings  as  such  board ;  and  shall  state  therein  the  number  and 
condition  of  the  schools  in  said  district  under  their  charge,  and  the  number  of 
scholars  attending  the  same,  the  studies  pursued,  the  amount  of  moneys  received 
from  the  state,  as  well  as  the  amount  raised  in  the  district  for  school  purposes, 
and  the  expenditure  of  the  same,  and,  generally,  all  the  particulars  relating  to 
the  schools  in  said  district;  which  report  may,  if  the  said  board  think  proper,  be 
published  in  pamphlet  form,  or  in  some  newspaper  published  in  the  count}-. 

§  9.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  entire  control  and  charge  of  the  district 
library;  they  may  employ  a  librarian,  make  such  additions  to  the  library  and 
such  regulations  in  relation  thereto,  as  they  may  deem  necessary  or  proper. 


NEW-YORK.  411 

§  10.  A  school  for  colored  children  may  he  organized  as  a  district  school,  and 
be  supported  as  the  other  schools  in  said  district  are  under  this  act. 

§11.  Whenever  the  said  board  of  education  shall  deem  it  necessary  to  erect 
one  or  more  school-houses  in  said  district,  they  shall  submit  the  plans  and  esti- 
mated cost  of  such  building  to  the  electors  of  such  district,  at  a  special  meeting 
called  for  that  purpose,  and  if  a  majority  of  such  electors  present  shall  vote  in 
favor  of  the  same,  the  said  board  may  proceed  to  erect  said  school  house  or 
houses ;  and  if  the  sums  authorized  to  be  raised  by  sections  live  and  six  of  this 
act  shall  be  insufficient  to  pay  the  cost  of  such  building,  then  the  said  board 
may  raise  an  additional  sum,  not  exceeding  five  hundred  dollars,  to  be  levied  and 
collected  as  provided  for  in  sections  live  and  six  of  this  act,  to  be  expended  in 
defraying  such  cost. 

§  12.  The  said  board  of  education  may  call  special  meetings  of  said  district 
whenever  they  may  deem  it  necessary;  and  whenever  a  special  meeting  shall  be 
called,  notices  of  it  shall  be  posted  up  in  five  public  places  in  said  district,  at  least 
one  week  previous  to  said  meeting;  and  no  business  shall  be  transacted  at  such 
meetings  except  that  stated  in  the  notice  calling  the  same. 

§  13.  All  laws  and  parts  of  laws  inconsistent  with  this  act  are  hereby  repealed. 
30  far  as  they  relate  to  district  number  three,  iu  the  town  of  Newtown,  county 
of  Queens. 


CITY  OF  NEW- YORK. 

f  Laws  of  1851,  chap.  386,  as  amended  by  chap.  301  of  1853,  chap.  101  of  1854 
and  chap.  267  of  1854. j 

OF    SCHOOL    OFFICERS    AND    THEIR    ELECTION. 

Section  1.  There  shall  he  two  commissioners,  two  inspectors  and  eight  trustees 
of  common  schools  in  each  of  the  wards  of  the  city  of  New- York,  who  shall  be 
known  as  the  school  officers  of  the  ward. 

At  every  general  election  there  shall  be  elected  in  each  of  the  said  wards  one 
inspector  and  two  trustees  of  common  schools,  who  shall  take  office  on  the  first 
day  of  January  next  succeeding  their  election,  and  hold  the  same  for  the  following 
terms :  the  commissioner  and  inspector  for  two  years  each,  and  the  trustees  for 
four  years  each. 

The  commissioners,  inspectors  and  trustees  of  common  schools,  in  office,  shall 
continue  to  hold  their  offices  until  the  first  day  of  January,  one  thousand  eight 
hundred  and  fifty-five,  and  until  the  expiration  of  the  terms  for  which  they  were 
elected  by  the  people,  as  determined  by  lot,  or  for  which  they  were  appointed  by 
the  Public  School  Society;  and  the  trustees  elected  by  the  people  previous  to 
the  first  day  of  January,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-three,  shall  also 
continue  in  office  until  the  thirty-first  day  of  December  next  succeeding  the  expi- 
ration of  the  terms  for  which  they  were  respectively  elected  ;  provided,  however, 
that  the  term  of  office  of  every  trustee  elected  before  the  first  day  of  January, 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-four,  shall  cease  and  terminate  on  or  before 
the  first  day  of  January,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-eight. 

In  the  case  of  two  or  more  trustees,  chosen  at  the  same  election  in  any  ward, 
such  trustees  shall  cease  to  hold  office  as  follows :  those  elected  before  the  first 
day  of  January,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-three,  on  the  thirty-first 
day  of  December  next  succeeding  the  expiration  of  their  respective  terms,  as 
legally  determined  by  lot  or  otherwise ;  and  those  elected  after  said  first  day  of 
January,  at  the  expiration  of  their  respective  terms,  as  legally  determined  by  lot 
or  otherwise,  unless  otherwise  provided  by  this  act ;  and  in  every  case  in  which 
there  has  not  been  such  a  legal  determination  of  terms,  the  board  of  education 
shall,  on  the  first  Wednesday  in  May,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-four, 
determine  by  lot  and  declare  the  term  for  which  each  of  the  trustees  shall  servo. 


412  NEW-YORK. 

The  board  of  education  shall,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  June,  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty  four,  prepare  and  cause  to  be  filed  in  the  office  of  tlie 
clerk  of  the  said  board  a  list  of  all  the  school  officers  then  in  office,  stating  which 
of  them  were  elected  by  the  people,  which  of  them  were  appointed  by  the  Public 
School  Society,  and  which  of  them  were  appointed  by  the  board  of  education  to 
fill  vacancies,  and  also  the  times  at  which  the  said  school  officers  will  respectively 
cease  to  hold  their  offices,  which  list  shall  be  prima  facie  evidence  in  respect  to 
the  matters  hereby  required  to  be  stated  therein. 

The  school  officers  previously  appointed  to  fill  vacancies  shall  continue  iu 
office  until  the  first  day  of  January,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-five, 
and  no  longer ;  and  every  person  thereafter  appointed  to  fill  a  vacancy  in  a  school 
office  shall  hold  his  office  until  the  first  day  of  January  next  succeeding  the  time 
of  his  appointment  and  no  longer. 

Every  vacancy  in  the  office  of  a  commissioner,  inspector  or  trustee  of  common 
schools,  occurring  more  than  twenty  days  previous  to  any  general  election,  and 
every  person  chosen  to  fill  a  vacancy,  shall  take  office  on  the  first  day  of  January 
next  succeeding  the  election,  and  hold  the  same  for  the  residue  of  the  term;  and 
in  every  such  case,  the  person  voted  for  to  fill  a  vacancy  shall  be  designated  in 
the  ballot  by  the  words  "to  fill  vacancy,"  written  or  printed  immediately  over 
his  name,  and  shall  also  be  so  designated  in  the  returns  of  the  election ;  and  if 
there  be  more  than  one  vacancy  in  the  office  of  trustee  in  any  ward,  to  be  filled  at 
the  same  election,  each  person  voted  for  to  fill  a  vacancy  shall  be  designated,  on 
the  ballot  and  in  the  returns,  by  adding  the  number  of  years  for  which  he  is  to 
serve  to  the  words  "  to  fill  vacancy  ;"  so  that  the  designation  will  read,  "  to  fill 
vacancy  of        years." 

In  case  in  any  ward  the  number  of  trustees  in  office  shall  at  any  time  be  less 
than  eight,  the  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  upon  the  nomination  of  the 
school  'officers  of  the  ward,  to  appoint  as  many  trustees  as  will  make,  including 
the  trustees  previously  in  office,  eight  trustees  for  the  ward ;  but  the  trustees  so 
appointed  shall  cease  to  hold  office  on  the  first  day  of  January  next  ensuing,  and 
their  successors  shall  be  chosen,  at  the  next  general  election,  to  serve  for  such 
number  of  years,  respectively,  as  the  board  of  education  may  designate. 

The  board  of  education  shall,  at  least  fifteen  days  previous  to  every  general 
election,  cause  to  be  filed  in  tjie  office  of  the  clerk  of  the  common  council  a  list 
of  the  school  offices  to  be  filled  at  the  next  general  election,  stating  the  names  of 
the  officers  whose  term  will  expire ;  and  also,  in  each  case  of  an  unexpired  term 
in  which  a  vacancy  is  to  be  filled,  stating  the  number  of  years  which  the  person 
elected  to  fill  the  same  will  be  entitled  to  serve. 

The  elections  held  by  virtue  of  this  act  shall  be  subject  to  the  same  laws  and 
regulations,  in  all  respects,  as  those  which  govern  the  general  elections  in  said 
city.  The  ballots  for  school  officers  shall  be  endorsed  "  common  schools,"  and 
deposited  in  a  separate  box  to  be  provided  therefor. 

Every  school  officer  shall,  before  entering  on  the  duties  of  his  office,  and  within 
fifteen  days  after  the  commencement  of  the  term  for  which  he  is  elected,  or  from 
the  time  of  being  notified  of  his  appointment  to  fill  a  vacancy,  take  and  subscribe 
before  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  education  the  oath  prescribed  by  the  constitu- 
tion of  this  state.  And  any  school  office,  to  which  any  person  who  shall  omit  to 
take  the  said  oath  within  the  time  and  in  the  manner  above  prescribed  may  have 
been  elected  or  appointed  in  said  city,  shall  be  considered  as  vacant  from  and 
after  the  expiration  of  said  fifteen  days,  and  the  vacancy  shall  thereupon  be  filled 
in  the  manner  in  which  other  vacancies  in  school  offices  are  filled. 

The  board  of  education  shall  be  judges  of  the  election  or  appointment  and 
qualification  of  its  members. 

Every  school  officer  shall,  at  the  time  of  his  election  or  appointment,  be  a  resi- 
dent of  the  ward  for  which  he  is  elected  or  appointed  ;  and  the  board  of  school 
officers  of  any  ward  shall  have  power  to  declare  vacant  the  office  of  any  commis- 
sioner, inspector  or  trustee,  elected  by  the  people  or  appointed  by  the  board  of 
education,  who  shall  have  removed  from  the  ward;  and  it  shall  be  the  duty  of 
such  board  of  school  officers  to  consider  the  subject  and  determine  whether  or 


NEW- YORK.  413 

not  He  seat  of  the  officer  who  shall  have  removed  from  the  ward  shall  he  declared 
vacant. 


OP    THE    BOARD    OP    EDUCATION ITS     POWERS    AND    DUTIES. 

§  2.  The  commissioners  of  common  schools  shall  constitute  a  board  of  education 
for  the  city  and  county  of  New-York.  They  shall  meet  on  the  second  Wednesday 
of  January,  in  each  year,  for  the  purpose  of  organization,  and  thereafter  for  the 
transaction  of  business  as  often  as  they  may  determine  ;  they  shall  elect  one  of 
their  number  president,  and  shall  appoint  a  clerk,  and  as  many  assistant  clerks 
and  other  officers  for  the  transaction  of  the  business  of  the  board  as  may  be 
necessary,  who  shall  severally  hold  their  offices  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board, 
and  whose  respective  duties,  powers  and  compensation  shall  be  regulated  and 
determined  by  the  board. 

The  board  of  education  shall  have  power  : 

1.  To  take  and  hold  property,  both  real  and  personal,  devised  or  transferred  to 
it  for  the  purposes  of  public  education  in  the  city  of  New-York ; 

2.  To  appoint  a  city  superintendent  of  schools,  and  one  or  more  assistant 
superintendents,  and  also  a  superintendent  of  school  buildings,  whose  respective 
duties,  powers,  salaries  and  terms  of  office,  except  as  herein  otherwise  provided, 
shall  be  regulated  and  determined  by  the  board  of  education,  and  to  employ, 
under  the  superintendent  of  school  buildings,  necessary  workmen,  and  provide 
necessary  materials  for  repairing,  altering  and  enlarging  school  or  other  buildings ; 
but  this  provision  shall  not  be  construed  to  compel  the  trustees  of  any  ward  to 
use  or  employ  such  workmen  or  materials  for  any  purpose  whatever; 

3.  On  the  nomination  of  the  school  officers  of  any  ward  to  fill  vacancies  in 
school  offices  which  may  occur  in  such  ward  between  the  general  elections,  and, 
upon  the  presentation  of  a  majority  of  the  school  officers  of  any  ward,  to  remove 
any  inspector  of  common  schools  for  such  ward  who  shall  be  proven  to  the 
satisfaction  of  the  board  of  education  to  have  wilfully,  or  without  good  cause, 
neglected  to  perform  any  duty  imposed  upon  him  by  this  act ;  and  it  shall  he  the 
duty  of  the  said  board  to  remove  from  office  any  commissioner,  inspector  or 
trustee  who  shall  be  or  become  directly  or  indirectly  interested,  by  way  of  com- 
mission or  otherwise,  in  any  contract  or  undertaking  for  the  furnishing  of  any 
supplies  of  books  or  materials,  or  for  the  performing  of  any  labor  or  work  for 
any  of  the  schools  or  buildings  under  its  charge  ; 

4.  To  establish  new  schools,  as  hereinafter  provided  ; 

5.  To  draw  from  the  moneys  which  shall  be  raised  for  the  purpose  of  public 
education  such  sums  as  may  be  required  for  the  purpose  of  defraying  the 
necessary  incidental  expenses  of  the  board,  and  such  further  sums  as  may  be 
required  for  the  payment  of  the  salaries  of  such  clerks  and  other  officers  as  may 
be  appointed  by  virtue  of  the  authority  vested  in  the  board  by  this  act,  and  of 
such  other  expenses  as  may  be  necessarily  incurred  by  the  board  in  pursuance  of 
the  provisions  of  this  act ; 

6.  To  visit  and  examine  the  schools  subject  to  the  provisions  of  this  act ; 

7.  To  make  rules  of  order  and  by-laws  for  the  government  of  the  board,  its 
members  and  committees,  and  general  regulations  to  secure  proper  economy  and 
accountability  in  the  expenditure  of  the  school  moneys ; 

8.  To  continue  the  existing  free  academy  and  organize  a  similar  institution  for 
females ;  and  if  any  similar  institution  is  organized  by  the  board  of  education, 
all  the  provisions  of  this  act,  relative  to  the  free  academy,  shall  apply  to  each  and 
every  one  of  the  said  institutions,  now  existing  or  hereafter  established,  as  fully, 
completely  and  distinctly  as  they  could  or  would  if  it  was  the  only  institution  of 
the  kind;  to  distinguish  each  existing  and  future  institution  by  an  appropriate 
title  ;  and  to  purchase,  erect,  or  lease  sites  and  buildings  for  each  and  all  of  the 
said  institutions,  provided  that  no  additional  institution  shall  be  authorized  or 
organized  by  the  board  of  education,  unless  a  majority  of  the  whole  number  of 
members  of  the  said  board  shall  vote  iu  favor  thereof- 


414  NEW-YORK. 

9.  To  use  and  control  the  premises  known  as  the  hall  of  the  board  of  educa- 
tion, at  the  corner  of  Grand  and  Elm  streets,  to  direct  the  purposes  for  which  the 
same  may  be  occupied,  and  to  make  all  the  repairs,  alterations  and  additions  in 
and  to  the  same  which  the  board  may  deem  advisable,  and  to  provide  such 
additional  sites  and  buildings  as  may  be  necessary  for  the  purposes  of  this  act, 
the  title  of  which  shall,  in  all  cases,  be  vested  in  the  mayor,  aldermen  and  com- 
monalty of  the  city  of  New-York ; 

10.  To  dispose  of  such  personal  property,  used  in  the  school  or  other  buildings 
under  the  charge  of  the  board,  as  the  trustees  or  committees  having  the  immediate 
charge  thereof  shall  certify  is  no  longer  required  for  use  therein ;  and  all  moneys 
realized  by  the  sale  of  any  such  property  shall  be  paid  into  the  city  treasury,  for 
the  same  purposes  as  the  moneys  raised  under  the  sixteenth  section  of  this  act; 

11.  And  for  the  purposes  of  this  act,  the  said  board  shall  possess  the  powers 
and  privileges  of  a  corporation. 

§  o.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  education : 

1.  On  or  before  the  fifteenth  day  of  November,  in  each  year,  to  report  to  the 
board  of  supervisors  of  said  city  and  county  an  estimate  of  the  amount,  over  and 
above  the  sum  specified  in  the  fifteenth  section  of  this  act,  which  will  be  required 
during  the  year  for  the  purpose  of  meeting  the  current  annual  expenses  of  public 
instruction  in  said  city  for  purchasing,  leasing  and  procuring  sites;  for  erecting 
buildings,  and  for  furnishing,  fitting  up,  altering,  enlarging  and  repairing  the 
buildings  and  premises  under  their  charge ;  for  the  support  of  schools  which  shall 
have  been  organized  since  the  last  annual  apportionment  of  the  school  moneys 
made  by  the  board,  and  of  such  further  sum  or  sums  as  may  be  necessary  for  any 
of  the  purposes  authorized  by  this  act;  but  the  aggregate  amount  so  reported 
shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  four  dollars  for  each  pupil  who  shall  have  actually 
attended  and  been  taught  the  preceding  year  in  the  schools  entitled  to  participate 
in  the  apportionment ; 

2.  To  apportion  all  the  school  moneys,  which  shall  have  been  raised  for  the 
purpose  of  meeting  the  current  annual  expenses  of  public  instruction,  to  the 
schools  entitled  to  participate  therein  by  the  provisions  of  this  act; 

3.  To  file  with  the  chamberlain  of  said  city,  on  or  before  the  first  Monday  of 
April  in  each  year,  a  copy  of  their  apportionment,  stating  the  amount  apportioned 
to  the  schools  under  the  charge  of  the  board  of  education,  and  to  the  trustees, 
managers  and  directors  of  the  several  schools  enumerated  in  this  act; 

4.  To  continue  to  furnish  through  the  free  academy  the  benefit  of  education 
gratuitously,  to  persons  who  have  been  pupils  in  the  common  schools  of  the  said 
city  and- county,  for  a  period  of  time  to  be  regulated  by  the  board  of  education, 
not  less  than  one  year  ; 

5.  To  supervise,  manage  and  govern  said  free  academy,  and  make  all  needful 
rules  and  reglations  therefor;  fix  the  number  and  compensation  of  teachers  and 
others  to  be  employed  therein  ;  prescribe  the  preliminary  examination,  and  the 
terms  and  conditions  on  which  pupils  shall  be  received  and  instructed  therein  and 
discharged  therefrom ;  direct  the  course  of  studies  therein,  and  provide  in  all 
things  for  the  good  government  and  management  of  the  said  free  academy  ;  and 
purchase  the  books,  apparatus,  stationery  and  other  things  necessary  and  expedient 
to  enable  the  said  free  academy  to  be  properly  and  successfully  conducted,  and 
to  keep  the  said  building  or  buildings  properly  repaired  and  furnished.  And  the 
board,  upon  the  recommendation  of  the  faculty  of  the  free  academy,  may  grant 
the  usual  degrees  and  diplomas  in  the  arts  to  such  persons  as  shall  have  completed 
a  full  course  of  study  in  the  said  free  academy  ; 

6.  To  appoint  annually  a  standing  committee  of  not  less  than  five  persons  of 
their  number,  who  shall,  subject  to  the  control,  supervision  and  approbation  of  the 
said  board,  constitute  an  executive  committee  for  the  care,  government  and  man- 
agement of  the  said  free  academy,  under  the  rules  and  regulations  prescribed  as 
aforesaid,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  make  detailed  reports  to  the  said  hoard  of 
education,  and,  among  other  things,  to  recommend  the  rules  and  regulations  which 
they  deem  necessary  and  proper  for  the  said  academy.  The  board  of  education 
may,  at  any  regular  meeting  thereof,  by  a  majority  of  all  the  members  of  the 


NEW-YORK.  415 

said  board,  remove  any  or  all  the  members  of  the  said  committee,  and  appoint 
another  person  or  persons  in  place  of  the  member  or  members  of  the  said  com- 
mittee so  removed  ; 

7.  To  make  and  transmit  annually,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  February  in 
each  year,  to  the  common  council  of  said  city,  and  also  to  the  secretary  of 
the  board  of  regents  of  the  university  of  the  State  of  New-York,  a  report,  Bigned 
by  the  president  and  clerk  of  the  board  of  education,  and  dated  on  the  thirty-first 
day  of  December  next  preceding,  which  report  shall  state  the  names  and  ages  of 
all  the  pupils  instructed  in  such  free  academy  during  the  preceding  year,  and  the 
time  that  each  was  so  instructed,  specifying  which  of  them  have  completed  a  full 
course  of  study  therein,  and  which  have  received  degrees,  medals  and  other  spe- 
cial testimonials;  a  particular  statement  of  the  studies  pursued  by  each  pupil, 
since  the  last  preceding  report,  together  with  the  books  such  student  shall  hare 
studied,  in  whole  or  in  part,  and  if  in  part,  what  portion ;  an  account  or  estimate 
of  the  library,  philosophical  and  chemical  apparatus,  and  mathematical  or  other 
scientific  instruments  belonging  to  such  academy;  the  names  of  the  instructors 
employed  in  said  academy,  and  the  compensation  paid  to  each;  what  amount  of 
moneys  the  board  of  education  received  during  the  year  for  the  purposes  of  such 
academy,  and  from  what  sources,  specifying  how  much  from  each,  and  the  par- 
ticular manner  and  the  specific  purposes  for  which  such  moneys  have  been 
expended ;  and  such  other  information  in  relation  to  education  in  the  said 
academy,  and  the  measures  of  the  board  in  the  management  thereof,  as  the  said 
common  council  or  the  regents  of  the  university  of  the  State  of  New-York  may 
from  time  to  time  require ; 

8.  To  provide  evening  schools,  for  those  whose  ages  or  avocations  are  such  as 
to  prevent  their  attending  the  day  schools  established  by  law,  in  such  of  the  ward 
school-houses  or  other  buildings  used  for  school  purposes,  and  in  such  other 
places  in  said  city  as  they  may  from  time  to  time  deem  expedient,  and,  also,  a 
normal  school  or  schools  for  teachers,  which  shall  be  attended  by  such  of  the 
teachers  in  common  schools  as  the  board  of  education  by  general  regulations 
shall  direct,  under  penalty  of  forfeiture  of  their  situations  as  teachers  by  omitting 
to  attend,  which  forfeiture  shall  be  declared  by  the  board  of  education ;  and  to 
appoint  teachers  and  furnish  all  needful  supplies  for  the  evening  and  normal 
schools ; 

9.  To  furnish  all  necessary  supplies,  or  make  regulations  for  furnishing  such 
supplies,  for  the  several  schools  under  their  care;  but  when  such  supplies  are 
furnished  by  the  board  of  education  they  shall  be  obtained  by  contract,  proposals 
for  which  shall  be  advertised  for  the  period  of  at  least  two  weeks ; 

10.  To  make  and  transmit,  between  the  fifteenth  day  of  January  and  the  first 
day  of  February,  in  each  year,  to  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction 
and  to  the  common  council  of  the  city  of  New-York,  a  report,  in  writing,  bearing 
date  on  the  thirty-first  day  of  December  next  preceding,  stating  the  whole  num- 
ber of  schools  within  their  jurisdiction,  specially  designating  the  schools  for 
colored  children;  the  schools  or  societies  from  which  reports  shall  have  been 
made  to  the  board  of  education  within  the  time  limited  for  that  purpose;  the 
length  of  time  such  schools  shall  have  been  kept  open ;  the  amount  of  public 
money  apportioned  or  appropriated  to  said  school  or  society ;  the  number  taught 
in  each  school;  the  whole  amount  of  money  drawn  from  the  city  chamberlain  for 
the  purposes  of  education  during  the  year  ending  at  the  date  of  their  report, 
distinguishing  the  amount  received  from  the  general  fund  of  the  state,  and  from 
all  other  and  what  sources ;  the  manner  in  which  such  moneys  shall  have  been 
expended;  and  such  other  information  as  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public 
Instruction  may  from  time  to  time  require  in  relation  to  common  school 
education  in  the  city  and  county  of  New-York;  and  the  report  which  the  board 
of  education  is  hereby  required  to  make  shall  be  held  and  taken  to  be  a  full 
compliance  with  every  law  requiring  a  report  from  the  said  board,  or  any  officer 
of  the  city  and  county  of  New-York,  except  the  city  superintendent,  relative  to 
the  schools  in  the  said  city,  or  any  matters  connected  therewith. 


416  NEW-YORE. 

§  4.  If  the  board  of  education  shall  neglect  to  make  such  annual  report  within 
the  time  limited,  the  share  of  school  moneys  apportioned  to  the  city  and  county 
of  New-York  may,  in  the  discretion  of  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  In- 
struction, be  withheld  until  a  suitable  report  shall  have  been  rendered. 

§  5.  The  clerk  of  the  board  of  education  shall  have  charge  of  the  rooms,  books, 
papers  and  documents  of  the  board,  and  shall,  in  addition  to  his  duties  as  secre- 
tary of  the  board,  perform  such  other  clerical  duties  as  may  be  required  by  its 
members  or  committees. 

§  6.  All  schools  which  have  been  organized  under  the  act  entitled  "  An  act  to 
extend  to  the  city  and  county  of  New-York  the  provisions  of  the  general  act  in 
relation  to  common  schools,"  passed  April  11,  1842,  and  the  acts  amending  the 
same,  or  organized  or  adopted  under  this  act,  shall  be  common  schools,  called 
"  ward  schools,"  or  "ward  primaries;"  and  each  class  shall  be  numbered  con- 
secutively, according  to  the  time  of  their  organization  or  adoption,  and  all  such 
schools  shall  be  under  the  supervision  and  government  of  the  commissioners,  in- 
spectors and  trustees  of  the  ward  in  which  they  are  located. 

POWERS    AND    DUTIES    OF    SCHOOL    OFFICERS. 

§  7.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  school  officers,  or  a  majority  of  them,  in  any 
ward : 

1.  To  certify  to  the  board  of  education  of  the  city  and  county  of  New-York, 
whenever,  in  their  opinion,  it  is  necessary  to  organize  one  or  more  additional 
schools  in  said  ward,  with  the  facts  and  circumstances  showing  such  necessity, 
together  with  the  character  of  the  school  buildings  required,  and  the  number 
and  class  of  scholars  who  will  probably  attend  such  schools,  if  organized,  and  to 
organize  such  schools,  as  hereinafter  provided ; 

2.  To  provide,  under  such  rules  and  regulations  as  the  board  of  education  may 
establish,  the  necessary  books,  stationery  and  other  essentials  necessary  to 
organize  and  conduct  any  school  in  their  ward; 

3.  To  examine,  ascertain  and  report  to  the  board  of  education,  and  as  frequently 
as  may  be,  whether  the  provisions  of  this  act  in  relation  to  the-teaching  of  secta- 
rian doctrines,  or  the  use  of  sectarian  books,  shall  have  been  violated;  and 

4.  To  notify  the  board  of  education  of  any  vacancy  in  the  office  of  any  school 
officer  of  their  respective  wards,  and  to  make  nominations  as  in  this  act  provided. 

POWERS    AND    DUTIES    OF    COMMISSIONERS. 

§  8.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  commissioners  of  common  schools  in  the  seve- 
ral wards : 

1.  To  attend  all  the  meetings  of  the  board  of  education  ;  and  if  any  commis- 
sioner shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  attend  any  three  successive  stated  meetings  of 
the  board,  after  having  been  personally  notified  to  attend,  and  if  no  satisfactory 
cause  of  his  non-attendance  be  shown,  the  board  may  declare  his  office  vacant; 

2.  To  transmit  to  the  board  of  education  all  reports  made  to  them  by  the 
trustees  and  inspectors  of  their  respective  wards ; 

3.  To  visit  and  examine  all  the  schools  entitled  to  participate  in  the  appor- 
tionment ; 

4.  They  shall  be,  ex  officio,  members  of  the  board  of  trustees  of  their  respective 
wards 

POWERS    AND    DUTIES    OF    INSPECTORS. 

§  9.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  inspectors  of  common  schools : 
1.  To  inspect  and  examine  each  of  the  schools  in  their  respective  wards  at  least 
twice  in  each  year,  and  oftener  if  necessary;  and  on  or  before  the  fifteenth  day 
of  October,  in  each  year,  to  make  and  transmit  to  the  board  of  education,  and  to 


NEW- YORK.  417 

the  trustees  of  the  ward,  a  report  in  writing,  in  which  they  shall  set  forth  the 
condition  of  the  several  school  buildings  in  use  in  their  ward,  and  whether  any, 
and,  if  any,  what  repairs,  alterations  or  modifications  of  those  buildings  seem  to 
them  necessary ; 

2.  Whether  they  are  kept  clean  and  in  good  order; 

3.  In  what  manner  they  are  heated  and  ventilated,  and  how  effectual  the 
means  used  are  in  producing  the  result  desired  ; 

4.  The  studies  pursued ; 

5.  The  progress  of  the  classes  in  their  different  studies; 

6.  The  punctuality  of  attendance  of  the  scholars  and  teachers; 

7.  The  order,  attention  and  general  appearance  of  the  school ; 

8.  The  length  of  each  morning  and  evening  session  ;  and  the  number  and  length 
of  recesses  allowed ; 

9.  The  number  and  qualifications  of  the  teachers,  and  such  other  facts  as  in 
their  opinion  are  important  to  insure  the  discipline  or  extend  the  usefulness  of 
the  schools ; 

10.  In  conjunction  with  the  city  superintendent  of  common  schools,  to  license 
teachers  for  their  respective  wards ;  and 

11.  To  examine  and  audit  all  accounts,  when  duly  certified  by  the  trustees  to 
be  correct. 


POWERS    AND    DUTIES    OP    TRUSTEES. 

§  10.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  for  each  ward,  and  they  shall  have 
the  power  : 

1.  To  have  the  safe  keeping  of  all  the  premises  and  other  property  used  for 
or  belonging  to  the  ward  schools  and  the  ward  primaries  in  their  respective  wards ; 

2.  Under  such  general  rules  and  regulations  as  the  board  of  education  may 
adopt,  to  contract  with  and  employ  teachers  and  janitors  in  the  said  schools,  and 
conduct  and  manage  the  same,  and  furnish  all  needful  supplies  therefor,  subject 
to  the  provisions  of  the  third  section  of  this  act;  and  make  all  needful  repairs, 
alterations  and  additions  in  and  to  the  school  premises,  provided  that,  if  the  cost 
of  any  such  repairs,  alteration  or  addition  shall  exceed  the  sum  of  two  hundred 
dollars,  the  same  shall  be  made  by  contract,  pursuant  to  the  twenty-fifth  section 
of  this  act ;    ' 

3.  To  procure,  as  may  be  necessary,  blank  books,  in  one  of  which  a  statement 
of  the  amounts  of  all  moneys  received  and  paid  by  the  trustees  or  otherwise,  for 
or  on  account  of  each  of  the  schools  conducted  by  them,  and  of  all  movable  pro- 
perty belonging  to  each  school,  shall  be  entered  at  large  and  signed  by  such 
trustees  ;  and  in  one  book  minutes  of  their  meetings  shall  be  kept;  and  in  other 
books  the  principal  teacher  of  each  school  and  department  shall  enter  the  names, 
ages  and  residences  of  the  scholars  attending  the  school,  the  name  of  a  parent  or 
guardian  of  each  scholar,  and  the  days  on  which  the  scholars  shall  have  respec- 
tively attended,  and  the  aggregate  attendance  of  each  scholar  during  the  year; 
also  the  days  on  which  each  school  shall  have  been  visited  by  the  city  and 
assistant  superintendents  of  schools,  and  the  school  officers  of  the  ward,  and  the 
members  of  the  board  of  education  or  any  of  them,  which  entries  shall  be  verified 
by  the  oath  or  affirmation  of  the  principal  teacher  in  such  school  or  department. 
The  said  books  shall  be  preserved  by  the  trustees  as  the  property  of  the  school, 
and  shall  be  delivered  to  their  successors ; 

4.  To  make,  at  least  five  days  before  the  first  day  of  January  in  every  year,  or 
such  other  day  as  may  be  designated  by  the  board  of  education,  in  the  case  of  a 
school  kept  open  after  the  twenty-fifth  day  of  December,  and  transmit  to  the 
board  of  education,  a  report  in  writing,  dated  the  thirty-first  day  of  December, 
which  shall  be  signed  and  certified  by  a  majority  of  the  trustees,  and  which 
report  shall  state  the  whole  number  of  schools  within  their  jurisdiction,  especially 
designating  the  schools  for  colored  children ;  the  length  of  time  each  school  shall 
have  been  kept  open  ;  the  whole  number  of  scholars  over  four  and  under  twenty- 

fOoDE.]  53 


418  NEW- YORK. 

one  years  of  age  who  shall  have  been  taught,  free  of  expense  to  such  scholars,  in 
their  schools  during  the  year  ending  with  the  date  of  the  report,  which  number 
shall  be  ascertained  by  adding  to  the  number  of  children  on  register,  at  the  com- 
mencement of  each  year,  the  number  admitted  during  that  year,  which  shall  be 
considered  the  total  for  that  year;  the  average  number  that  has  actually  attended 
such  schools  during  the  year,  to  be  ascertained  by  the  teacher's  keeping  an  exact 
account  of  the  number  of  scholars  present  every  school  time  or  half  day,  which, 
being  added  together  and  divided  by  four  hundred  and  sixty,  or,  if  less  than  a 
year,  by  the  number  of  school  sessions,  shall  be  considered  the  average  of  attend- 
ing scholars,  which  average  shall  be  sworn  or  affirmed  to  by  the  principal  teacher 
of  the  school ;  a  detailed  statement  of  the  amount  of  moneys  received  for  or  paid 
on  account  of  their  respective  schools  during  the  year  from  or  by  the  chamberlain 
of  the  city,  and  uf  the  purposes  for  and  the  manner  in  which  the  same  shall  have 
been  expended ;  and  a  particular  account  of  the  state  of  the  schools,  and  of  the 
property  and  affairs  of  each  school  under  their  care;  and  the  titles  of  all  books 
used,  with  such  other  information  as  the  board  of  education  shall  require ;  and 
for  the  purposes  of  this  act  each  department  shall,  whenever  practicable,  be  con- 
sidered as  a  separate  school ; 

5.  To  hold  as  a  corporation  all  personal  property  vested  in  or  transferred  to 
them  for  school  purposes  in  their  respective  wards ; 

6.  To  render,  at  the  expiration  of  their  respective  terms  of  office,  to  their  suc- 
cessors a  just  and  true  account  in  writing  of  all  moneys  received  by  them  for 
school  purposes,  and  of  the  manner  in  which  the  same  shall  have  been  expended, 
and  to  pay  any  balance  which  may  remain  in  their  hands  to  their  successors; 

7.  To  meet  statedly  at  times,  to  be  by  them  appointed,  and  to  declare  vacant, 
by  the  votes  of  a  majority  of  the  trustees  of  the  ward,  the  seat  of  any  person, 
elected  or  appointed  as  a  trustee,  who  shall  refuse  or  neglect,  without  satisfactory 
cause  shown  by  him  to  the  sajd  trustees,  to  attend  any  three  successive  stated 
meetings  of  the  trustees,  after  having  been  previously  notified  to  attend  ;  and  to 
notify  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  education,  at  least  twenty  days  previous  to  any 
general  election,  of  any  vacancy  that  will  exist  in  the  school  offices  of  said  ward 
at  the  expiration  of  their  present  year,  with  the  cause  or  reason  of  such  vacancy 
or  vacancies. 

OF    THE    CITY    SUPERINTENDENT. 

§  11.  The  city  and  assistant  superintendents  of  schools  shall  take  and  subscribe, 
before  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  education,  the  oath  of  office  prescribed  by  the 
constitution  of  this  state ;  shall  each  hold  office  for  the  term  of  two  years  and 
until  his  successor  is  appoirted,  subject  to  removal  by  the  board  on  complaint, 
for  cause  stated ;  shall  respectively  receive  such  compensation  as  the  board  of 
education  may  designate,  which  shall  not  be  changed  during  the  term  of  office  of 
any  incumbent;  and  shall  be  subject  to  such  rules  and  regulations  as  the  board 
of  education  may  establish.  It  shall  be  specially  the  duty  of  the  city  superin- 
tendent : 

1.  To  visit  every  school  under  the  charge  of  the  board  of  education  as  often  as 
once  in  each  year;  to  inquire  into  all  matters  ielating  to  the  government,  course 
of  instruction,  books,  studies,  discipline  and  conduct  of  such  schools,  and  the 
condition  of  the  school-houses  and  of  the  schools  generally,  and  to  advise  and  to 
counsel  with  the  trustees  in  relation  to  their  duties,  the  proper  studies,  discipline 
and  conduct  of  the  schools,  the  course  of  instruction  to  be  pursued,  and  the  books 
of  elementary  instruction  to  be  used  therein  ;  and  to  examine,  ascertain  and  report 
to  the  board  of  education,  whether  the  provisions  of  the  act  in  relation  to  religious 
sectarian  teaching  and  books  have  been  violated  in  any  of  the  schools  of  the  differ- 
ent wards  of  the  city;  and  to  make  a  monthly  report  to  the  board  of  education, 
stating  which  of  the  schools  have  been  visited  by  him,  and  adding  such  comments 
in  respect  to  the  matters  above  specified  as  he  ruay  consider  necessary  and  advi- 
sable ;  and  to  transmit  to  the  respective  boards  of  ward  trustees  copies  of  so 
much  of  such  reports  as  relates  to  schools  under  their  management ; 


NEW-YORK.  419 

2.  Under  such  general  rules  and  regulations  as  tlie  board  of  education  may 
establish,  to  examine  into  the  qualifications  of  persons  proposed  as  teachers  in 
any  of  the  schools  under  the  charge  of  the  board,  and  to  grant  certificates  in  the 
forms  prescribed  by  the  board,  to  such  of  the  persons  so  examined  as  may  be 

entitled  thereto;  which  certificates  shall  specify  in  which  class  of  schools  and  in 
what  capacity  the  persons  to  whom  any  certificate  is  granted  are  qualified  to 
teach,  and  shall  be  evidence  in  respect  thereto;  to  reexamine,  whenever  the  city 
superintendent  may  deem  necessary,  any  of  the  teachers  employed  in  the  schools 
under  the  charge  of  the  board ;  and  to  annul,  for  any  cause  satisfactory  to  the 
city  superintendent,  any  license  or  certificate  of  qualification  to  teach  in  the 
schools  of  the  city  of  New- York;  but  such  action  shall  not  be  taken  by  him  until 
he  has  given  at  least  ten  days'  previous  notice  to  the  teacher  and  to  the  trustees 
of  the  ward  in  which  he  is  employed,  nor  until  the  teacher  has  been  allowed  a 
hearing;  nor  shall  such  action  disqualify  the  teacher,  until  a  note  of  the  decision 
of  the  city  superintendent,  stating  the  name  of  the  teacher  and  the  time  when  the 
license  or  certificate  was  annulled,  has  been  signed  by  the  city  superintendent 
filed  in  the  office  of  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  education,  and  "served  upon  the 
teacher;  provided,  however,  that  evens/  such  teacher  shall  have  a  right  to  appeal 
to  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  and  incase  such  appeal  is  taken 
by  the  teacher  within  ten  days  after  the  note  of  the  decision  is  served  upon  him 
he  shall  not  be  disqualified  until  the  action  of  the  city  superintendent  has  been 
confirmed  by  the  Stato  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction; 

3.  Generally,  by  all  the  means  in  his  power,  under  the  regulations  of  the  board 
of  education  in  respect  thereto,  to  promote  sound  education,  elevate  the  character 
and  qualifications  of  teachers,  improve  the  means  of  instruction,  and  advance  the 
interests  of  the  schools  committed  to  his  charge. 

§  12.  The  city  superintendent  shall  be  subject  to  such  general  rules  and  regu- 
lations as  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  may  prescribe;  and 
appeals  from  his  acts  and  decisions  may  be  made  to  the  superintendent  in  the 
same  manner  and  with  like  effect  as  in  cases  now* provided  by  law,  and  he  shall 
make  annually  to  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  at  such  times  as 
shall  be  appointed  by  him,  a  report,  in  writing,  containing  the  whole  number  of 
schools  in  the  city  and  county,  distinguishing  the  schools  from  which  the  neces- 
sary reports  have  been  made  to  the  board  of  education  by  the  commissioners, 
inspectors  and  trustees  of  common  schools,  and  containing  a  certified  copy  of 
the  reports  of  the  board  of  education  to  the  clerk  of  the  city  and  county,  "with 
such  additional  information  as  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  may 
require. 

§  13.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  education,  by  general  rules  and  regu- 
lations, to  provide  a  proper  classification  of  studies,  scholars  and  salaries,  in  such 
manner  that,  as  near  as  practicable,  the  system  of  instruction  pursued  in  the 
common  schools  and  the  salaries  paid  to  teachers  shall  be  uniform  throughout 
the  city. 


OF  THE  SUPPORT  OF  SCHOOLS. 

§  14.  Whenever  the  clerk  of  the  city  and  county  shall  receive  notice  from  the 
State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction  of  the  amount  of  moneys  apportioned 
to  the  county  of  New-York  for  the  support  and  encouragement  of  common  schools 
therein,  he  shall  immediately  lay  the  same  before  the  board  of  supervisors  of  said 
county;  and  the  chamberlain  of  the  said  city  shall  apply  for  and  receive  the 
school  moneys  apportioned  to  the  said  county  as  soon  as  the  same  become  payable, 
and  place  the  same  in  the  city  treasury,  for  the  same  purposes  as  the  moneys 
raised  under  the  sixteenth  section  of  this  act. 

§  15.  The  said  board  of  supervisors  shall  annually  raise  and  collect,  by  tax 
upon  the  inhabitants  of  the  said  city  and  county,  a  sum  of  money,  equal  to  the 
sum  specified  in  such  notice,  at  the  time  and  in  the  same  manner  as  the  contingent 
charges  of  the  said  city  and  county  are  levied  and  collected,  also  a  sum  of  money 


420  NEW-YORK. 

equal  to  one-twentieth  of  one  per  cent  of  the  value  of  the  real  and  personal 
property  in  the  said  city  liable  to  be  asse^sed  thereon,  and  pay  the  same  into  the 
city  treasury,  to  be  applied  to  the  purposes  of  common  schools  in  the  said  city  ; 
and  the  board  of  education  shall  apportion  the  money  so  raised  to  each  of  the 
schools  hereafter  provided  for  by  this  act,  except  the  free  academy  and  the 
evening  schools,  according  to  the  number  of  children  over  four  and  under  twenty- 
one  years  of  age  who  were  actual  residents  of  the  city  and  county  of  New- York 
at  the  time  of  their  attendance  on  such  schools,  without  charge,  the  preceding 
year;  and  the  average  shall  be  ascertained  by  adding  together  the  number  of 
such  children  present  at  each  morning  and  afternoon  session  of  not  less  than  three 
hours,  and  dividing  the  sum  by  four  hundred  and  sixty;  and  if  any  school  shall 
have  been  organized  since  the  last  annual  apportionment,  the  average  shall  be 
ascertained  by  dividing  by  a  number  corresponding  to  the  actual  number  of 
morning  and  evening  sessions,  of  not  less  than  three  hours  each,  held  since  the 
organization  of  such  school ;  and  the  sum  apportioned  to  any  schools,  other  than 
the  ward  schools,  shall  be  paid  to  the  trustees,  manages  or  directors  of  such 
schools,  respectively,  by  drafts  on  the  city  chamberlain,  to  be  signed  by  the  presi- 
dent and  clerk  of  said  board,  and  made  payable  to  the  order  of  the  treasurers  of 
said  trustees,  managers  or  directors. 

§  16.  Said  board  of  supervisors  shall  also  raise  and  collect,  at  the  same  time 
and  in  the  same  manner,  such  additional  sum  or  sums  as  the  board  of  education, 
in  pursuance  of  tiie  provisions  of  the  first  subdivision  of  the  third  section  of  this 
act,  shall  have  reported  to  be  necessary  for  the  purposes  therein  mentioned.  Such 
moneys  shall  be  paid  into  the  city  treasury,  and  shall,  together  with  the  amounts 
apportioned  to  the  schools  under  the  charge  of  the  board  of  education,  be  paid 
by  the  chamberlain  of  the  said  city  upon  the  drafts  drawn  on  him  by  the  board 
of  education,  signed  by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the  clerk  of  the 
board,  and  by  the  commissioners,  or  one  of  them,  of  the  ward  for  which  the 
money  is  to  be  paid,  except  such  sums  as  shall  be  drawn  for  purposes  other  than 
the  expenses  of  ward  schools,  which  shall  be  paid  by  said  chamberlain  upon  drafts 
drawn  on  him  by  said  board,  signed  by  the  president  and  clerk,  and  countersigned 
by  the  chairman  of  the  finance  committee  of  said  board  ;  and  all  drafts  shall  be 
made  payable  to  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to  receive  the  same,  except  that 
the  payment  of  wages  and  salaries  may  be  made  by  pay-rolls,  upon  which  "each 
person  shall  separately  receipt  for  the  amount  paid  to  such  person  ;  and  in  every 
case  of  jiayment  by  a  pay-roll,  the  draft  for  the  aggregate  amount  of  wages  or 
salaries  included  therein  shall  be  made  payable  to  the  superintendent,  principal 
teacher  or  other  officer  designated  for  the  purpose  by  the  by-laws  of  the  board 
of  education. 

§  17.  If  any  of  the  said  newly  organized  ward  schools,  by  reason  of  peculiar 
circumstances,  shall  be  equitably  entitled  to  a  larger  sum  than  they  will  receive 
under  an  apportionment  made  as  aforesaid,  then  the  board  of  education  shall  be 
authorized,  and  the}'  are  hereby  required,  to  make  to  such  schools  such  further 
allowance  out  of  the  school  moneys  as  they,  the  board  of  education,  shall  deem 
just  and  proper. 

§  18.  No  school  shall  be  entitled  to  or  receive  any  portion  of  the  school  moneys 
in  which  the  religious  doctrines  or  tenets  of  any  particular  Christian  or  other 
religious  sect  shall  be  taught,  inculcated  or  practiced,  or  in  which  any  book  or 
books,  containing  compositions  favorable  or  prejudicial  to  the  particular  doctrines 
or  tenets  of  any  particular  Christian  or  other  religious  sect,  or  which  shall  teach 
the  doctrines  or  tenets  of  any  other  religious  sect,  or  which  shall  refuse  to  permit 
the  visits  and  examinations  provided  for  in  this  act.  But  nothing  herein  contained 
shall  authorize  the  board  of  education  to  exclude  the  Holy  Scriptures,  without 
note  or  comment,  or  any  selections  therefrom,  from  any  of  the  schools  provided 
for  by  this  act;  but  it  shall  not  be  competent  for  the  said  board  of  education  to 
decide  what  version,  if  any.  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  without  note  or  comment, 
shall  be  used  in  any  of  the  schools  ;  provided  that  nothing  herein  contained  shall 
be  so  construed  as  to  violate  the  rights  of  conscience  as  secured  by  the  Constitu- 
tion of  this  state  and  of  the  United  States ; 


NEW-YORK.  421 

§  19.  If  the  school  moneys  apportioned  to  the  common  schools,  agreeably  to 
the  previous  section  of  this  act,  shall  exceed  the  necessary  and  legal  expenses  of 
cither  of  such  schools,  the  board  of  education  shall  authorize  the  payment  only 
of  such  sum  or  sums  as  shall  be  sufficient  to  provide  for  such  expenses,  and  any 
deficiency  in  the  sums  apportioned  to  meet  the  necessary  and  leual  expenses  of 
public  education  in  the  said  schools  shall  be  supplied  by  the  common  council  of 
the  said  city;  and  they  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  raise  by  loan,  in 
anticipation  of  the  annual  tax,  such  sum  or  sums  as  shall  be  necessary  to  meet 
such  deficiency.  And  the  board  of  education  shall  in  all  cases  certify  to  the 
common  council  the  cause  of  such  deficiency,  and  that  the  same  was  unavoidable  ; 
and  unless  such  certificate  shall  be  made,  the  said  common  council  may  refuse  to 
raise  the  sum  required  to  meet  such  deficiency. 

§  20.  The  board  of  education  shall  require  from  the  executive  committees  con- 
ducting schools  by  appointment  of  the  board,  and  from  the  trustees,  managers  or 
directors  of  the  corporate  schools  entitled  to  participate  in  the  apportionment  of 
school  moneys,  a  report  in  all  respects  similar  to  that  required  from  the  trustees 
of  each  ward  by  the  tenth  section  of  this  act.  And  in  making  the  apportionment 
among  the  several  schools,  no  share  shall  be  allotted  to  any  school  or  society 
from  which  no  sufficient  annual  report  shall  have  been  received  lor  the  year  end- 
ing on  the  last  day  of  December  immediately  preceding  the  apportionment. 

§  21.  Whenever  an  apportionment  of  the  public  money  shall  not  be  made  to 
any  school,  in  consequence  of  any  accidental  omission  to  make  any  report 
required  by  law  or  to  comply  with  any  other  regulation  or  provision  of  law.  the 
board  of  education  may,  in  its  discretion,  direct  an  apportionment  to  be  made  to 
such  school,  according  to  the  equitable  circumstances  of  the  case,  to  be  paid  out 
of  the  public  money  on  hand,  or,  if  the  same  shall  have  been  distributed,  out  of 
the  public  money  to  be  received  in  a  succeeding  year. 

OF    THE    SCHOOLS    ENTITLED    TO    PARTICIPATE    IN    THE    APPORTIONMENT. 

§  22.  The  New-Yo.rk  .Orphan  Asylum  school,  the  Roman  Catholic  Orphan 
Asylum  school,  the  schools  of  the  two  Half-Orphan  Asylums,  the  school  of  the 
Mechanics'  Society,  the  school  of  the  Society  for  the  Reformation  of  Juvenile 
Delinquents  in  the  city  of  New- York,  the  Hamilton  Free  School,  the  school  for 
the  Leake  and  Watts'  Orphan  House,  the  school  connected  with  the  Alms  House 
of  the  said  city,  the  school  of  the  Association  for  the  Benefit  of  Colored  Orphans, 
the  schools  of  the  American  Female  Guardian  Society,  the  schools  of  the  Society 
for  the  Promotion  of  Education  among  Colored  Children  [  the  schools  of  the 
Five  Points  House  of  Industry  and  the  Ladies'  Home  Missionary  Society,  see 
chap.  450  o/1855],  the  schools  organized  under  the  act  entitled  "  An  act  to  ex- 
tend to  the  city  and  county  of  New-York  the  provisions  of  the  general  act  in 
relation  to  common  schools,"  passed  April  11,  1842,  or  an  act  to  amend  the  same, 
passed  April  18,  1813,  or  an  act  entitled  ':  An  act  more  effectually  to  provide  for 
common  school  education  in  the  city  and  county  of  New-York,"  passed  May  7, 
1844,  or  any  of  the  acts  amending  the  same,  and  including  such  normal  schools 
for  the  education  of  teachers  as  the  board  of  education  may  organize,  and  the 
normal  school  of  the  Public  School  Society  for  the  Education  of  Teachers,  and 
such  schools  as  may  be  organized  under  the  provisions  of  this  act,  shall  be  subject 
to  the  general  supervision  of  the  board  of  education,  and  shall  be  entitled  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  apportionment  of  the  school  moneys,  as  provided  for  by  this  act, 
but  they  shall  be  under  the  immediate  direction  of  their  respective  trustees, 
managers  and  directors,  as  herein  provided. 

OF    NEW    SCHOOLS. 

§  23.  Whenever  a  majority  of  the  school  officers  of  any  ward  shall  certify  in 
writing  to  the  board  of  education  that  it  is  necessary  to  establish  a  school  in  said 
ward,  with  the  facts  and  circumstances  showing  such  necessity,  together  with  the 


422  NEW-YORK. 

number  and  class  of  scholars  who  will  probably  attend  such  school,  if  established, 
it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  education  without  delay,  to  investigate  the 
subject  and  determine  the  expediency  of  establishing  such  school  in  such  ward 
applying  for  the  same.  Should  the  ward  officers,  or  any  of  them,  deem  them- 
selves aggrieved  by  such  decision,  they  may  appeal  to  the  State  Superintendent 
of  Public  Instruction,  who  shall  decide  as  to  the  propriety  of  the  establishment 
of  such  school,  and  his  decision,  if  adverse  to  the  appellants,  shall  be  binding  for 
the  term  of  one  year. 

§  24.  Upon  a  decision  favorable  to  the  establishment  of  a  school  or  schools  in 
any  of  the  wards  of  said  city,  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  school  office  s  of  said  ward 
to  proceed  to  organize  one  or  more  schools,  such  as  may  be  authorized  by  the 
board  of  education,  and  procure  a  school-house,  by  purchasing  or  hiring  the 
same,  or  by  procuring  a  site  and  erecting  a  building  thereon,  according  to  plans 
and  specifications  and  contracts  which  shall  have  been  duly  filed  with  and 
approved  by  the  board  of  education;  the  erection  of  which  said  building,  and  the 
fitting  up  thereof,  and  the  fitting  up  of  any  hired  building,  shall  be  done  by  con- 
tract, proposals  for  which  shall  he  advertised  for  two  weeks  previous  to  deciding 
upon  estimates  thereon,  unless  such  fitting  up  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  two 
hundred  dollars;  and  the  expense  of  establishing  and  organizing  any  school,  as 
above  mentioned,  shall  be  levied  and  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  25.  The  title  to  all  school  property,  real  and  personal,  purchased  with  any 
moneys  derived  from  the  distribution  or  apportionment  of  the  school  moneys,  or 
raised  by  taxation  in  the  city  of  New-York,  shall  he  vested  in  the  mayor,  alder- 
men and  commonalty  of  said  city,  but  shall  be  under  the  care  and  control  of  the 
board  of  education  for  the  purposes  of  public  education,  and  all  suits  in  relation 
to  the  same  shall  be  brought  in  the  name  of  said  board ;  and  no  contract  or  con- 
tracts shall  be  made  by  the  school  officers  of  any  ward,  for  the  purchase  of  any 
site,  without  the  consent  of  the  board  of  education,  or  for  the  erection  or  fitting 
up  or  repairing  of  any  building,  when  such  repairs  shall  exceed  in  amount  the 
sum  of  two  hundred  dollars,  as  authorized  in  this  act,  until  a  statement  in  writing 
of  the  amount  required  for  that  purpose  shall  have  heen  presented  to  the  board 
of  education  by  said  school  officers,  and,  together  with  a  copy  of  the  working 
drawings,  plans  and  specifications  of  the  work  to  be  done,  pursuant  to  the  pro- 
visions of  this  act,  shall  have  heen  duly  filed  and  approved  of,  as  herein  required, 
and  an  appropriation  shall  have  been  made  by  the  board  of  education  therefor. 

§  20.  The  trustees,  managers  and  directors  of  any  of  the  corporate  schools  enti- 
tled to  participate  in  the  apportionment  of  the  school  moneys  may  at  any  time 
convey  their  school-houses  and  sites  to  the  corporation  of  the  city  of  New- York, 
and  transfer  any  of  their  schools  to  the  board  of  education,  on  the  terms  and  in 
the  maimer  to  be  agreed  upon  and  prescribed  by  the  board  of  education,  so  as 
either  to  merge  the  said  schools  in  the  ward  schools  or  adopt  them  as  ward 
schools;  and  the  same  shall  then  be  ward  schools,  subject  to  all  the  rules,  duties 
and  liabilities,  and  enjoy  the  same  rights,  as  if  they  had  been  originally  established 
as  ward  schools. 


OF    THE    DISCONTINUANCE    OF    SCHOOLS. 

§  27.  Whenever,  owing  to  any  nuisance  or  other  circumstances  in  the  immediate 
vicinity  of  any  school,  or  to  the  small  attendance  of  scholars  therein,  or  other 
sufficient  reason,  it  shall  appear  to  the  board  of  education  necessary  and  proper 
to  discontinue  such  school  in  any  of  the  wards  of  this  city,  the  said  board  shall 
give  notice  to  the  trustees  of  said  school  of  its  intention  to  consider  the  propriety 
of  such  discontinuance;  and  in  thirty  days  after  such  notice  may  proceed  to 
investigate  the  matter,  and  if  a  majority  of  the  school  officers  of  the  ward  shall 
consent  to  the  same,  and  if  the  said  board  shall  determine  by  a  vote  of  a  majority 
of  all  the  members  thereof  that  it  is  proper  to  close  the  same,  it  shall  be  the  duty 
of  said  board  to  withhold  all  moneys  which  have  been  apportioned  or  appro- 
priated for  the  support  of  said  school,  and  the  said  school  shall  not  thereafter  par- 


NEW-YORK.  423 

ticipate  in  any  subsequent  apportionment  of  the  school  moneys.  So  soon  as  tho 
same  shall  take  effect,  the  comptroller  of  the  city  shall  be  notified  thereof  by  tho 
said  hoard,  and  the  said  school-house  and  site  may  thereupon  he  used  or  disposed 
of  as  a  part  of  the  general  property  of  the  city. 


MISCELLANEOUS    PROVISIONS. 

§  28.  The  common  council  of  the  city  of  New- York  are  hereby  authorized  and 
directed  to  raise  by  loan,  in  anticipation  of  the  taxes,  when  necessary,  all  moneys 
required  for  erecting,  purchasing  or  leasing  school-houses  and  procuring  sites 
therefor,  and  the  fitting  up  and  furnishing  thereof,  and  for  alterations  in  or  addi- 
tions to  the  present  school  buildings,  or  required  for  any  other  of  the  purposes 
authorized  by  this  act. 

§  29.  All  expenses  incurred  for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  the  respective 
wards  shall  be  certified  by  the  trustees  of  common  schools  in  such  ward,  or  a 
majority  of  them,  and  delivered  to  the  inspectors  of  said  ward;  and  it  shall  be 
the  duty  of  said  inspectors  to  examine  and  audit  the  same,  and,  npon  said  inspec- 
tors being  satisfied  of  their  correctness,  to  certify  the  same  to  ihe  hoard  of  educa- 
tion.    All  bills  audited  and  paid  shall  be  filed  with  the  board  of  education. 

§  30.  No  compensation  shall  be  allowed  to  the  commissioners,  inspectors  or 
trustees  of  common  schools  for  any  services  performed  by  them,  but  the  commis- 
sioners and  inspectors  shall  receive  their  actual  and  reasonable  expenses  while 
attending  to  the  duties  of  their  office,  to  be  audited  and  allowed  by  the  board  of 
education. 

§  31.  Every  school  officer  who  shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  render  an  account,  or 
to  pay  over  any  balance  in  his  hands  at  the  expiration  of  his  term  of  office,  shall, 
for  each  offence,  forfeit  the  sum  of  fifty  dollars,  which  sum,  together  with  said 
unpaid  balance,  shall  be  sued  for  and  collected  by  the  board  of  supervisors,  who 
shall  prosecute  without  delay  for  the  recovery  of  such  forfeiture,  together  with 
the  unpaid  balance;  and  in  case  of  the  death  of  such  school  officer,  suit  may  be 
brought  against  his  representatives,  and  all  moneys  recovered,  after  deducting 
expenses,  shall  be  placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  board  of  education. 

§  32.  Every  person  in  the  employ  of  the  board  of  education,  and  every  school 
officer,  and  every  officer  or  teacher  of  a  school  or  society,  who  shall  wilfully  sign 
a  false  report  to  the  board  of  education,  shall,  for  each  offence,  forfeit  the  sum 
of  twenty-five  dollars,  and  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  misdemeanor;  and  every 
such  person  or  officer  who  shall  wilfully  misapply  any  of  the  public  funds  com- 
mitted to  his  care  shall  be  deemed  guilty  of  embezzlement. 

§  33.  The  following  shall  be  substantially  the  form  of  oath  or  affirmation  to  be 
made  by  the  teacher : 

"  A.  B.,  of  the  city  of  New- York,  teacher  of  No. 

department,  being  duly  sworn  or  affirmed,  declares  and  says  that,  to  the  best  of 
(his  or  her)  knowledge  and  belief,  the  aeerage  number  of  children,  actual  resi- 
dents of  the  city  and  county  of  New- York  at  the  time  of  attending  said  school, 
between  the  age  of  four  and  twenty-one  years,  who  attended  said  school  or  depart- 
ment, each  school-time  or  half-day,  from  the  day  of 
to  the  first  day  of  January,  ,  was  ,  said  average 
having  been  obtained  by  adding  together  the  number  of  scholars  present  each 
school-time  or  half  day,"and  dividing  the  total  by  four  hundred  and  sixty,  agree- 
ably to  the  fifteenth  section  of  this  act." 

§  34.  If  any  suit  which  shall  hereafter  be  commenced  against  the  commissioners 
or  trustees  of  common  schools  for  any  act  performed  by  virtue  of  or  under  color 
of  their  offices,  or  for  any  refusal  or  omission  to  perform  any  duty  enjoined  by 
law,  and  which  might  have  been  the  subject  of  an  appeal  to  the  superintendent, 
no  costs  shall  be  allowed  to  the  plaintiff  in  cases  where  the  court  shall  certify  it 
appeared  on  the  trial  of  the  cause  that  the  defendants  acted  in  good  faith.     But 


424  NEW-YORK. 

this  provision  shall  not  extend  to  suits  for  penalties,  nor  to  suits  or  proceedings 
to  enforce  the  decisions  of  the  State  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction. 

§  35.  All  children  between  the  age  of  four  and  twenty-one,  residing  in  the  city 
and  county,  shall  be  entitled  to  attend  any  of  the  common  schools  therein :  and 
the  parents,  guardians  or  other  persons  having  the  custody  or  care  of  such  child- 
ren shall  not  be  liable  to  any  tax,  assessment  or  imposition  for  the  tuition  of 
any  children  other  than  is  hereinbefore  provided. 

§  36.  The  free  academy  in  the  city  of  New-York  shall  be  entitled  to  participate 
in  the  distribution  of  the  income  of  the  literature  and  other  funds,  in  the  same 
manner  and  upon  the  same  conditions  as  the  other  academies  of  the  state;  and  the 
regents  of  the  university  of  the  State  of  New-York  shall  pay  annually  to  the  board 
of  education  of  the  city  and  county  of  New-York  the  distributive  share  of  the 
said  funds  to  which  the  said  free  academy  shall  by  law  be  entitled,  and  which 
shall  be  applied  and  expended  for  library  books  for  the  said  free  academy. 

§  37.  The  clerk  of  the  board  of  education  is  hereby  authorized  to  administer 
oaths  and  take  affidavits  in  all  matters  appertaining  to  the  schools  in  the  city  and 
county  of  New-York,  and  for  that  purpose  shall  possess  all  the  powers  of  a  com- 
missioner of  deeds,  but  shall  not  be  entitled  to  any  of  the  fees  or  emoluments 
thereof. 

§  38.  No  school  officer  shall  be  interested  in  any  contract,  payments  under 
which  are  to  be  made,  in  whole  or  in  part,  out  of  moneys  derived  from  the  school 
fund  or  raised  by  taxation  for  the  support  of  common  schools.  No  teacher 
employed  in  any  of  the  schools  entitled  to  participate  in  the  apportionment  of 
the  school  moneys  shall  hereafter  be  eligible  to  the  office  of  commissioner, 
inspector  or  trustee  of  common  schools. 

§  39.  The  superintendent  of  school  buildings  shall  take  and  subscribe  before 
the  clerk  of  the  board  of  education  the  oath  prescribed  by  the  constitution  of 
this  state,  and  give  such  security  for  the  faithful  performance  of  the  duties  of  his 
office  as  the  board  of  education  may  direct;  and  the  department  under  his  charge 
shall  be  subject  to  such  rules  and  regulations  as  the  said  board  may  establish, 
one  of  which  shall  prohibit  the  performance  by  him  of  any  work  on  other  account 
similar  to  that  performed  under  the  regulations  so  established. 

§  40.  The  act  entitled  "  An  act  to  extend  to  the  city  and  county  of  New-York 
the  provisions  of  the  general  act  in  relation  to  common  schools,"  passed  April  11, 
1842,  and  an  act  amending  the  same,  passed  April  18th,  1813,  and  an  act  entitled 
"An  act  more  effectually  to  provide  for  common  school  education  in  the  city  and 
county  of  New- York,"  passed  May  7th,  1844,  and  the  several  acts  amending  the 
same,  passed  respectively  on  May  11th,  1847,  March  27th,  1848,  April  11th, 
1849,  and  the  act  authorizing  the  board  of  education  of  the  city  of  New-York 
to  establish  evening  schools  for  the  education  of  apprentices  and  others,  passed 
March  25th,  1848,  and  an  act  authorizing  the  board  of  education  of  the  city  and 
county  of  New- York  to  establish  a  free  academy  in  said  city,  passed  May  7th, 
1847,  and  all  other  acts  and  parts  of  acts,  inconsistent  with  or  repugnant  to  the 
provisions  of  this  act,  are  hereby  repealed. 

[Laws  of  1853,  chap.  217.] 

[The  only  sections  of  this  act  which  relate  to  public  instruction  are  the  fol- 
lowing:] 

§  16.  All  the  ordinary  appropriations  made  for  the  support  and  government 
of  the  alms-house  department  shall,  before  the  same  are  finally  made,  be  submit- 
ted by  the  governors  of  the  alms-house  to  a  board  of  commissioners,  consisting 
of  the  mayor,  recorder,  comptroller,  the  president  of  the  board  of  alderman,  and 
the  president  of  the  board  of  councilmen ;  if  the  said  commissioners  approve  of 
the  appropriation,  they  shall  immediately  report  the  same  to  the  board  of  super- 
visors ;  if  they  shall  disapprove  of  the  same,  they  shall  return  them,  with  their 
objections,  to  the  governors  of  the  alms-house  for  reconsideration  ;  and  in  case  the 
said  governors  shall,  upon  a  re-consideration  adhere  by  a  vote  of  two-thirds  of 


NEW-YORK.  425 

all  the  governors  then  in  office  to  the  original  appropriations,  they  shall  return 
them  to  the  commissioners,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  report  to  the  board  of 
supervisors. 

§  17.  The  board  of  education  shall  also  submit  in  like  manner  all  appropria- 
tions required  by  them  to  the  commissioners  named  in  the  last  preceding  section, 
and  said  appropriations  shall  be  subject  to  all  the  provisions  of  said  section,  so 
far  as  the  same  may  be  applicable. 


[Laics  o/1853,  chap.  301.] 

Section  1.  The  Public  School  Society  of  the  city  of  New- York  shall,  on  or 
before  the  first  day  of  September,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-three,  convey  and 
transfer,  according  to  this  act,  by  deed  to  be  approved  by  the  counsel  to  the 
corporation  of  said  city,  all  their  corporate  property  to  the  mayor,  aldermen  and 
commonalty  of  the  city  of  New-York,  subject  to  all  liens  and  incumbrances  thereon 
and  the  debts  of  said  society ;  and  thereupon  the  said  property  shall  belong  to  the 
said  mayor,  aldermen  and  commonalty,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  school  property 
now  used  and  occupied  by  the  ward  schools  belongs  to  the  said  mayor,  aldermen 
and  commonalty ;  and  the  schools  of  the  Public  School  Society  shall  be  ward 
schools,  subject  to  the  same  control,  and  enjoy  the  same  rights  and  privileges,  as 
if  originally  organized  as  ward  schools;  but  such  portions  of  the  property  afore- 
said as  have  been  granted  to  the  public  school  society,  subject  to  the  trust  that 
the  same  shall  be  devoted  to  the  purposes  of  common  schools,  shall  he  held  subject 
to  such  trust,  and  the  premises  now  known  as  Trustees'  Hall,  situated  at  the 
corner  of  Grand  and  Elm  streets,  shall  be  used  and  occupied  by  the  board  of 
education,  as  Ions  as  they  may  think  advisable,  for  the  meetings  and  business 
thereof,  and  for  such  educational  purposes  as  the  said  board  may  direct;  and  the 
residue  of  the  property  aforesaid  shall  be  conveyed  for  the  purposes  of  common 
schools,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  property  purchased  by  the  authority  of  the 
board  of  education  for  the  purpose  aforesaid. 

§  2.  The  Public  School  Society  shall,  at  the  time  of  such  conveyance,  make  a 
detailed  statement  of  all  their  property,  real  and  personal,  and  of  all  their  debts  of 
every  description  existing  at  the  time  of  such  conveyance,  which  shall  he  certified 
as  a  full,  just  and  true  statement  of  all  such  property  and  debts  by  their  presi- 
dent, treasurer  and  secretary,  and  shall  deliver  one  copy  thereof,  so  certified,  to 
the  comptroller  of  the  city  of  New-York,  and  the  other  copy,  so  certified,  to  the 
clerk  of  the  city  and  county  of  New- York,  for  the  use  of  the  board  of  supervisors 
of  the  city  and  county  of  New-York ;  and  the  said  board  of  supervisors  shall 
thereupon  proceed  to  audit  and  determine  the  amount  of  all  the  debts  of  the 
said  society,  and  shall  cause  the  same  to  be  certified  and  filed  with  the  said 
comptroller. 

§  3.  Upon  the  amount  of  the  debts  of  the  said  society  being  so  certified  and 
filed,  it  shall  be  lawful  for  the  mayor,  aldermen  and  commonalty  of  the  city  of 
New- York,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to  raise  by  loan,  a  sum  not  exceeding  the 
amount  of  the  debt  so  certified  and  filed,  by  the  creation  of  a  public  fund  or  stock, 
to  be  called  "  The  public  education  stock  of  the  city  of  New-York,  of  the  year 
one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-three,"  which  shall  bear  an  interest  of  five 
per  cent  per  annum,  and  which  shall  be  redeemable  at  a  period  of  time  not  more 
than  twenty  years  from  the  passage  of  this  act.  The  said  mayor,  aldermen  and 
commonalty  shall  determine  of  what  number  of  shares  the  said  stock  shall  con- 
sist; and  the  said  stock  shall  be  disposed  of  by  public  competition,  under  the 
direction  of  the  commissioners  of  the  sinking  fund  of  the  city  of  New- York.  The 
moneys  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act  shall  be  applied  for  the  purpose  of  paying 
and  discharging  all  the  said  debts ;  any  deficiency,  by  reason  of  interest  accruing 
on  the  said  debts,  after  the  same  are  so  certified  and  filed,  shall  be  paid  by  the 
said  mayor,  aldermen  and  commonalty  out  of  the  city  treasury ;  and  any  excess, 
by  reason  of  the  said  stock  being  disposed  of  at  a  premium,  shall  be  held  as  a  part 
of  the  sinking  fund  hereinafter  provided. 
[Code.]  54 


426  NEW-YORK. 

§  4.  The  board  of  supervisors  shall,  yearly  and  every  year  until  the  said  stock 
shall  be  wholly  redeemed  and  paid  off,  order  and  cause  to  be  raised  by  tax,  on  the 
estate,  real  and  personal,  of  the  freeholders  and  inhabitants  of  and  situated 
within  the  said  city  and  county,  and  to  be  collected  according  to  law,  a  sum  of 
money  sufficient  to  pay  the  interest  on  the  said  stock  as  the  same  falls  due,  and 
to  pay  and  discharge  the  principal  by  the  time  the  same  shall  be  payable.  All 
of  which  moneys,  so  to  be  raised,  shall  be  under  the  management  and  control  of 
the  commissioners  of  the  sinking  fund  of  the  city  of  New-York ;  and  all  such 
moneys,  so  to  be  raised,  are  hereby  inviolably  pledged  to  pay  the  interest  and 
redeem  the  principal  of  the  said  stock. 

§  5.  The  Public  School  Society  may,  immediately  after  so  conveying  all  their 
corporate  property,  appoint  fifteen,  from  the  then  trustees  of  said  society,  to  be 
commissioners  of  common  schools  for  the  city  of  New- York  and  members  of  the 
board  of  education,  designating  the  ward  for  which  each  person  is  appointed  — 
and  not  more  than  one  for  any  one  ward  —  who  shall  hold  their  offices  till  the  first 
day  of  January,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-five  ;  and  the  said  Public 
School  Society  may  also  at  the  same  time  appoint,  from  among  their  own 
trustees,  three  trustees  of  common  schools  for  each  ward  of  said  city  in  which 
one  or  more  of  the  schools  of  said  society  are  now  established,  designating  the 
ward  for  which  each  person  is  appointed ;  and  the  said  trustees  so  appointed 
shall  be  so  designated,  in  the  certificate  of  appointment,  that  one  shall  serve  until 
January  first,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-five,  one  till  January  first,  eighteen 
hundred  and  fifty-six,  and  one  until  January  first,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty- 
seven.  The  said  appointments  shall  be  made  by  a  certificate  signed  by  the  offi- 
cers of  said  society,  and  filed  with  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  education ;  and  the 
said  commissioners  and  trustees  so  appointed  shall  have  the  same  rights  and 
powers,  and  be  subject  to  the  same  liabilities  and  duties,  as  other  commissioners 
and  trustees  of  common  schools  in  said  city,  except  that  they  need  not  reside  in 
the  wards  for  which  they  are  appointed.  Any  vacancy  occurring  in  the  office  of 
any  such  commissioner  or  trustee  shall  be  filled  in  the  same  manner  as  vacancies 
in  school  offices  are  now  filled. 

§  6.  As  soon  as  the  said  Public  School  Society  shall  have  conveyed  all  their 
corporate  property,  and  made  and  filed  the  statements,  and  made  and  filed  the 
appointments  of  commissioners  and  trustees  provided  for  in  the  previous  sections 
of  this  act,  the  corporate  powers  and  the  existence  of  the  said  Public  School 
Society  shall  cease,  and  their  schools  be  merged  in  the  system  of  public  instruc- 
tion provided  by  the  act  entitled  "  An  act  to  amend,  consolidate  and  reduce  to 
one  act  the  various  acts  relative  to  the  common  schools  of  the  city  of  New- York," 
passed  July  third,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-one,  so  as  to  be  and  remain,  pursu- 
ant to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  an  integral  portion  thereof,  and  then  and  thereby 
the  said  society  shall  be  dissolved;  and  then,  and  from  thenceforth,  the  common 
schools  of  the  city  of  New- York  shall  be  numbered  consecutively  by  the  board 
of  education. 

[  Sections  seven  to  fifteen  of  this  act  are  solely  amendatory  of  the  act  of  1851, 
and  the  amendments  they  prescribe  are  embodied  in  that  act.  ] 

§  16.  This  act  shall  take  effect  immediately,  except  that  sections  three,  four, 
thirteen  and  fifteen  shall  not  take  effect  until  the  said  Public  School  Society 
have  conveyed  their  property,  and  made  and  furnished  a  list  thereof,  and  of  their 
debts,  and  made  and  filed  the  certificate  of  appointment  provided  for  by  this  act, 
but  shall  take  effect  immediately  thereafter. 

[  Laws  of  1854,  chap.  267.  ] 

§  2.  All  the  trusts  and  estates  held  by  or  vested  in  the  Public  School  Society 
of  the  city  of  New- York,  as  organized  and  existing  previous  to  its  several  acts,  in 
compliance  with  the  provisions  of  the  act  entitled  "An  act  relative  to  common 
schools  in  the  city  of  New- York,"  passed  the  fourth  day  of  June,  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty-three,  which  have  not  been  conveyed  by  the  society, -and 
all  the  rights,  powers  and  duties  of  the  said  society  which  yet  remain  therein, 


OSWEGO.  427 

shall  continue  and  be  vested  in  the  board  of  education  of  the  city  of  New- York. 
which  board  is  and  shajl  be  held  to  be  the  lawful  successors  of  the  said  society  in 
the  execution  of  every  trust;  and  the  corporate  existence  of  the  said  society  is 
hereby  merged  in  the  said  board;  and  the  persons  appointed  by  the  said  society 
as  commissioners  and  trustees  of  common  schools,  under  and  by  virtue  of  the 
said  act,  shall,  during  the  terms  for  which  they  were  respectively  appointed,  have 
and  possess  all  the  rights  and  powers,  and  be  subject  to  all  the  liabilities  and 
duties,  of  the  offices  to  which  they  were  so  appointed,  as  fully  and  completely  as 
they  would  or  could  if  the  said  society  had  fully  complied  with  all  the  provisions 
of  the  said  act. 

§  3.  The  commissioners  referred  to  in  the  seventeeth  section  of  the  act  entitled 
"An  act  further  to  amend  the  charter  of  the  city  of  New-York,"  passed  the 
twelfth  day  of  April,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-three,  shall  approve 
of  and  report  to  the  board  of  supervisors  all  appropriations  submitted  to  the  said 
commissioners  by  the  board  of  education,  within  twenty  days  after  such  submis- 
sion is  made,  by  the  delivery  of  a  statement  of  the  appropriations  required  "by  the 
board  of  education  to  the  comptroller,  who  shall  immediately  convene  the  said 
commissioners  to  consider  the  same;  or  else  the  said  commissioners  shall,  within 
the  said  twenty  days,  return  and  file  the  same,  with  their  objections,  in  the  office 
of  the  clerk  of  the  board  of  education ;  and  the  provisions  of  the  said  act  shall 
cease  to  operate  upon  or  affect,  from  and  after  the  expiration  of  the  said  twenty 
days,  any  appropriation  in  respect  to  which  the  said  commissioners  shall  have 
omitted  to  take  such  action;  or  any  appropriation  to  which  the  board  of  educa- 
tion, upon  a  reconsideration  pursuant  to  said  act,  shall  have  adhered  by  the 
requisite  vote  of  two-thirds,  which  the  said  commissioners  shall  omit  to  report 
within  ten  days  after  the  return  thereof  to  them,  to  the  board  of  supervisors.  And 
the  provisions  of  the  said  act  shall  apply  to  such  only  of  the  appropriations 
required  by  the  board  of  education  as  are  required  by  law  to  be  acted  upon  by 
the  board  of  supervisors. 


OSWEGO. 
[  Laws  of  1853,  chap.  119,  as  amended  by  chap.  437  of  1853,  and  chap.  96  of  1855.] 

Section  1.  There  shall  be  elected,  at  a  special  election  to  be  held  in  the  city  of 
Oswego,  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-three,  in  the 
same  manner  and  under  the  same  regulations  as  other  ward  officers  are  elected 
from  each  of  the  wards  of  said  city,  two  persons  to  be  commissioners  of  common 
schools  of  said  city.  The  persons  so  elected  shall  be  residents  of  the  ward  for 
which  they  shall  be  elected,  and  within  ten  days  after  receiving  notice  of  their 
election  take  the  oath  of  office  prescribed  by  the  constitution  of  this  state,  and 
file  the  same  with  the  city  clerk. 

§  2.  Within  ten  days  after  their  election  mentioned,  said  commissioners  shall 
meet  in  the  office  of  the  clerk  of  said  city,  and  shall  determine  by  lot  which  of 
the  two  persons  so  elected  for  each  ward  shall  serve  for  the  term  ending  on  the 
second  Tuesday  of  May,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-four,  and  which  for  the  term 
ending  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-five. 

§  3.  In  each  year  thereafter  there  shall  be  elected  in  said  city,  at  a  special 
election  to  be  held  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  in  each  year,  in  the  same  manner 
and  under  the  same  regulations  as  other  ward  officers  are  elected,  one  commissioner 
of  common  schools  for  each  ward,  to  supply  the  places  of  those  whose  terms  are 
about  to  expire ;  they  shall  hold  their  offices  for  two  years,  and  until  others  are 
appointed  and  have  taken  the  oath  of  office.  The  term  of  the  office  of  all  the 
commissioners  elected  pursuant  to  this  act  shall  commence  on  the  Tuesday  next 
after  the  election. 

§  4.  The  common  council  of  said  city  may  make  appointments  of  commissioners 
of  common  schools,  to  fill  vacancies  winch  may  occur  from  any  other  cause  than 


428  OSWEGO. 

the  expiration  of  the  term  of  office  of  those  elected.  The  commissioners  so 
appointed  shall  hold  their  office  until  the  Tuesday  next  succeeding  the  next  annual 
election ;  and  at  each  annual  election  there  shall  he  chosen  a  commissioner  to 
supply  the  place  of  any  person  so  appointed,  and  the  person  thus  elected  shall 
serve  out  the  unexpired  term. 

§  5.  Any  commissioner  of  common  schools  in  said  city  may  he  removed  from 
office  for  official  misconduct  by  the  common  council  of  said  city,  by  a  vote  of 
two-thirds  of  the  members  thereof;  but  a  written  copy  of  the  charges  preferred 
against  said  commissioner  shall  be  served  upon  him,  and  he  shall  be  allowed  an 
opportunity  of  refuting  any  such  charges  of  misconduct  before  removal. 

§  6.  The  commissioners  of  common  schools  in  said  city  shall  constitute  a  board, 
to  be  styled  "  The  Board  of  Educaton  of  the  city  of  Oswego,"  which  shall  be  a 
corporate  body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  upon  them  by 
virtue  of  this  act.  A  majority  of  the  board  shall  constitute  a  quorum.  The  first 
meeting  of  said  board  shall  be  held  on  the  second  Wednesday  of  May,  eighteen 
hundred  and  fifty-three;  and  the  annual  meetings  of  said  board,  in  each  year 
thereafter,  shall  be  held  on  the  second  Wednesday  of  May,  in  each  year ;  at  the 
first  meeting  of  the  board,  and  annually  thereafter,  at  the  annual  meeting,  they 
shall  elect  one  of  their  number  president  of  the  board,  and  whenever  he  shall  bo 
absent,  a  president  pro  tempore  may  be  appointed.  The  said  commissioners  shall 
receive  no  compensation  for  their  services,  nor  shall  they  be  interested,  directly 
or  indirectly,  in  any  contract  for  building  or  for  making  any  improvement  or 
repairs  provided  for  by  this  act.  They  shall  also  have  the  care  of  the  gospel  and 
school  lands,  and  the  securities  taken  therefor  belonging  to  said  city,  and  shall 
have  full  power  to  sell  the  same  and  apply  the  proceeds  in  such  manner  as  they 
shall  deem  most  for  the  interests  of  the  school  districts  in  said  city  now  entitled 
thereto. 

§  7.  The  said  commissioners  shall  meet  for  the  transaction  of  business  as  often 
as  once  in  each  month,  and  may  adjourn  for  any  shorter  time.  Special  meetings 
may  be  called  by  the  president,  or,  in  his  absence  or  inability  to  act,  by  any 
member  of  the  board,  as  often  as  necessary,  by  giving  personal  notice  to  each 
member  of  the  board,  or  by  causing  a  written  or  printed  notice  to  be  left  at  his 
last  place  of  residence,  at  least  twenty-four  hours  before  the  hour  for  such  special 
meeting. 

§  8.  The  said  commissioners  shall  appoint  a  secretary  and  librarian,  who  shall 
hold  his  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board,  and  whose  compensation  shall  bo 
fixed  by  the  board  ;  the  said  secretary  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of 
the  board,  have  charge  of  the  library,  and  perform  such  other  duties  as  the  board 
may  prescribe.  The  said  record,  or  transcript  thereof  certified  by  the  secretary, 
shall  be  received  in  all  courts  as  prima  facie  evidence  of  the  facts  therein  set 
forth;  and  such  record,  in  all  the  books,  accounts,  vouchers  and  papers  of  said 
board,  shall  at  all  times  be  subject  to  the  inspection  of  the  common  council  or 
any  committee  thereof. 

«;  9.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall  have  power  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty  to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  to  be  levied  upon  all  the  real  and  per- 
sonal estate  in  said  city  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  for  the  ordinary  city 
taxes  or  for  city  and  county  charges,  such  sums  as  may  be  determined  and  certi- 
fied by  the  said  board  of  education  to  be  necessary  and  proper  for  any  or  all  of 
the  following  purposes : 

1.  To  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites  for  school-houses; 

2.  To  build,  purchase,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses, 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages ;  but  the  power  herein  granted  shall  not  be  deemed  to 
authorize  the  furnishing  with  class  or  text  books  any  scholar  whose  parents  or 
guardian  shall  be  able  to  furnish  the  same ; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  common  schools, 
and  the  expenses  of  the  school  library  of  said  city,  and  the  necessary  contingent 
expenses  of  said  board,  including  the  salary  of  the  secretary  of  the  board; 


OSWEGO.  429 

5.  To  pay  teachers'  wages,  after  the  application  of  public  moneys  which  may 
by  law  be  appropriated  and  provided  for  that  purpose ;  provided,  nevertheless, 
that  the  tax  to  be  levied  as  aforesaid,  and  collected  by  virtue  of  this  act,  shall  bo 
collected  in  the  same  manner  as  other  city  taxes  ; 

6.  The  amount  raise;!  for  teachers'  wages  and  contingent  expenses  shall  nut  ho 
less  than  twice  nor  more  than  six  times  the  amount  appropriated  to  said  city  from 
the  common  school  fund  of  the  state  during  the  previous  year ;  nor  shall  the 
amount  necessary  to  be  raised  in  any  one  year  for  buying  sites,  erecting  and 
repairing  school-houses  and  the  appurtenances,  exceed  four  thousand  dollars, 
except  as  herein  otherwise  provided  for.  And  the  common  council  are  authorized 
and  directed,  when  necessary,  to  borrow  in  anticipation  the  amount  of  taxes  so  to 
be  raised,  collected  and  levied  as  aforesaid. 

§  10.  All  moneys  to  be  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  all 
school  moneys  by  law  appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  city,  shall  be  paid 
to  the  treasurer  of  said  city,  who,  together  with  the  sureties  upon  his  official  bond, 
shall  be  accountable  therefor  in  the  same  manner  as  for  other  moneys  of  said  city. 
The  said  treasurer  shall  be  liable  to  the  same  penalties  for  official  misconduct,  in 
relation  to  the  said  money,  as  for  any  similar  misconduct  in  relation  to  other 
moneys  of  said  city. 

§  11.  All  moneys  required  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act,  or  received  by  said 
city  for  the  use  of  the  common  schools  therein,  shall  be  deposited  for  the  safe 
keeping  thereof  with  the  treasurer  of  said  city,  to  the  credit  of  said  board  of 
education,  until  drawn  from  said  treasurer  as  hereinafter  provided  for;  and  the 
said  treasurer  shall  keep  the  fund,  authorized  by  this  act  to  be  received  by  him, 
separate  and  distinct  from  any  other  funds  which  he  is  or  may  by  law  be  author- 
ized to  receive. 

The  treasurer  shall  pay  out  the  moneys,  authorized  by  this  act  to  be  received 
by  him,  upon  drafts  drawn  by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the  secretary 
of  said  board  of  education,  which  draft  shall  not  be  drawn  except  in  pursuance 
of  a  resolution  or  resolutions  of  said  board,  and  shall  be  made  payable  to  the  per- 
son or  persons  entitled  to  receive  said  money. 

§  12.  The  said  board  may  cause  a  suit  or  suits  to  be  prosecuted  in  the 
name  of  the  city  of  Oswego,  upon  the  official  bond  of  the  treasurer  or  of  any 
collector  of  said  city,  for  any  default,  delinquency  or  official  misconduct  in 
relation  to  thecollection,  safe  keeping  and  payment  of  any  money  in  this  act 
mentioned. 

§  13.  The  said  board  shall  have  power  to  and  it  shall  be  their  duty : 

1.  To  organize  and  establish  such  and  so  many  schools  in  said  city,  including 
the  common  schools  now  existing  therein,  as  they  shall  deem  requisite  and  expe- 
dient, and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same  ; 

2.  To  purchase  and  bite  school-houses  and  rooms,  lots  or  sites  for  school- 
houses,  and  to  fence  and  improve  them  as  they  may  deem  proper ; 

3.  Upon  such  lots  and  upon  such  sites,  owned  by  said  city,  to  build,  enlarge, 
alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses,  out-houses  and  appurtenances,  as  they 
may  deem  advisable ; 

4.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books  for 
indigent  pupils,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  to  provide  fuel  for  the  schools, 
and  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  school  library ; 

5.  To  have  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses,  out-houses,  books, 
furniture  and  appurtenances,  and  to  see  that  the  ordinances  of  the  common  coun- 
cil in  relation  thereto  be  observed ; 

6.  To  contract  with,  license  and  employ  all  teachers  in  said  schools,  and  at 
their  pleasure  to  remove  them.  The  office  of  superintendent  of  schools  in  said 
city  is  hereby  abolished ; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  moneys  appropriated  and  pro- 
vided by  law  for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  said  city,  so  far  as  the  same 
shall  besufficient,  and  the  residue  thereof  from  the  money  authorized  to  be  raised 
for  that  purpose  by  section  nine  of  this  act,  by  tax  upon  said  city ; 


430  OSWEGO. 

8.  To  defray  the  necessary  and  contingent  expenses  of  the  board,  including  the 
annual  salary  of  the  secretary  of  the  board,  provided  the  account  of  the  expenses 
shall  first  be  audited  and  allowed  by  the  common  council ; 

9.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision  and  management  of 
the  common  schools  of  said  city,  and  from  time  to  time  to  adopt,  alter,  modify 
and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  rules  and  regulations  for  their  organi- 
zation, government  and  instruction,  or  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their  transfer 
from  one  school  to  another,  and  generally  for  their  good  order,  prosperity  and 
utilitv ; 

lo/  Whenever,  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  of  education,  it  may  be  advi- 
sable to  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  any  of  the  school  pro- 
perty now  or  hereafter  belonging  to  the  city,  to  report  the  same  to  the  common 

11.  To  prepare  and  report  to  the  common  council  such  ordinances  and  regula- 
tions as  may  be  necessary  and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and 
preservation  of  school-houses,  lots  and  sites  and  appurtenances,  and  all  the  pro- 
perty belonging  to  the  city  connected  with  or  appertaining  to  the  schools,  and  to 
suggest  proper  penalties  for  the  violation  of  such  ordinances  and  regulations ;  and 
annually,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  June  in  each  year,  to  determine  and  certify 
to  the  said  common  council  the  sums  in  their  opinion  necessary  or  proper  to  b« 
raised  under  the  ninth  section  of  this  act  for  the  year  commencing  on  the  first 
day  of  July  thereafter,  specifying  the  amount  required  for  each  of  the  purposes 
therein  mentioned,  and  the  reason  therefor; 

12.  To  unite  with  the  town  superintendent  of  schools  of  an  adjoining  town,  and 
form,  regulate  and  alter  any  district  out  of  any  portion  of  the  said  city  and 
adjoining" town,  whenever  they  shall  deem  it  necessary  and  proper  to  do  so;  and 
so  far  as^such  joint  district  or  districts  are  concerned,  such  board  shall,  during 
the  existence  of  such  districts,  have  the  same  powers  and  duties  which  the  town 
superintendents  of  schools  now  have ; 

13.  Between  the  first  day  of  July  and  the  first  day  of  August,  in  each  year,  to 
make  and  transmit  to  the  county  clerk,  or  such  other  officer  as  may  be  designated 
by  law,  a  report  in  writing,  bearing  date  the  first  of  July,  in  the  year  of  its  trans- 
mission, and  stating : 

i.  The  number  of  school-houses  in  said  city,  and  an  account  and  description  of 
all  common  schools  kept  in  said  city  during  the  preceding  year,  and  the  time 
they  have  severally  been  taught; 

ii.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  said  schools  respectively,  and  the  number 
of  children  over  the  age  of  four  years  and  under  the  age  of  twenty-one  years 
residing,  in  said  city  on  the  first  day  of  January,  in  each  year; 

in.  The  whole  amount  of  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  said  city 
during  the  preceding  year,  distinguishing  the  amount  received  from  the  city 
treasurer,  from  the  city  tax.  and  from  any  other  sources ; 

iv.  The  manner  in  which  such  moneys  have  been  expended,  and  whether  any 
and  what  part  remains  unexpended,  and  for  what  cause; 

v.  The  amount  of  moneys  received  for  tuition  fees  from  foreign  pupils  during 
the  year,  and  the  amount  paid  for  teachers'  wages  in  addition  to  the  public 
moneys,' with  such  other  information  relating  to  the  common  schools  of  said  city 
as  may  from  time  to  time  be  required  by  the  State  Superintendent  of  Common 
Schools. 

§  14.  Each  school  commissioner  shall  visit  all  of  the  schools  in  said  city  at  least 
twice  in  each  year  of  his  official  term ;  and  said  board  of  education  shall  provide 
that  each  of  said  schools  shall  be  visited  by  a  committee  of  three  or  more  of  their 
number  at  least  once  in  each  term. 

§  15.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  allow  the  children  of 
persons  not  resident  in  said  city  to  attend  the  schools  of  said  city,  under  the  con- 
trol and  care  of  said  board,  upon  such  terms  as  said  board  shall  by  resolution 
prescribe,  fixing  the  tuition  which  shall  be  paid  therefor. 

§  16.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  in  all  their  expenditures  and  contracts, 
to  have  reference  to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  subject  to  their  order, 


OSWEGO.  431 

during  the  then  current  year,  for  the  particular  expenditures  in  question,  and  not 
to  exceed  that  amount. 

§  17.  The  said  hoard  of  commissioners  shall  he  trustees  of  the-  school  lihrarics 
in  said  city ;  and  all  the  provisions  of  law  which  now  are  or  hereafter  may  he 
passed  relative  to  school  district  libraries  shall  apply  to  said  commissioners,  in 
the  same  manner  as  if  they  were  trustees  of  a  school  district  comprehending  raid 
city;  they  shall  also  be  vested  with  the  same  discretion,  as  to  the  disposition  of 
the  moneys  appropriated  by  the  laws  of  this  state  for  the  purchase  of  lihrarics, 
which  is  therein  conferred  on  the  inhabitants  of  school  districts.  It  shall  he  their 
duty  to  provide  room  or  rooms  and  the  necessary  furniture  therefor.  The  lihrarian 
shall  report  to  the  board  the  condition  of  the  library  or  the  libraries  under  their 
charge;  and  the  said  board,  or  secretary  thereof  under  the  direction  and  by  the 
resolution  of  said  board,  may  make  all  purchases  of  books  for  said  library  or 
libraries,  and  may  direct  the  mode  of  their  distribution,  and  may  cause  to  be 
repaired  damaged  books  belonging  thereto,  and  may  sell  any  book  in  said  library 
or  libraries  that  may  be  deemed  useless,  and  apply  the  proceeds  to  the  purchase 
of  other  books  for  said  library  or  libraries. 

§  18.  The  title  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  books,  apparatus  and 
appurtenances,  and  all  other  school  property  in  this  act  mentioned,  shall  be  vested 
in  the  city  of  Oswego,  and  the  same  while  used  or  appropriated  for  school  pur- 
poses shall  not  be  levied  or  sold  by  virtue  of  any  warrant  or  execution,  nor  be 
subject  to  taxation  for  any  purpose  whatever ;  and  the  said  city  in  its  corporate 
capacity  shall  be  able  to  take  hold  of  and  dispose  of  any  personal  or  real  estate 
transferred  to  it  by  grant,  gift,  bequest  or  devise  for  the  use  of  the  common 
schools  of  said  city,  whether  the  same  be  transferred  in  terms  to  said  city  by  its 
proper  style  or  by  any  other  designation,  or  to  any  person  or  persons  or  body 
for  the  use  of  said  schools. 

§  19.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall,  upon  the  recommendation  of  said 
board  of  education,  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  or  any  of  the  school 
property  now  or  hereafter  belonging  to  said  city,  upon  such  terms  as  the  common 
council  shall  deem  reasonable ;  the  proceeds  of  all  such  sales  shall  be  paid  to  the 
treasurer  of  said  city,  and  shall  be  by  said  board  expended  in  the  purchase, 
repairs  or  improvements  of  school-houses,  lots,  sites  or  school  furniture,  appara- 
tus or  appurtenances. 

§  20.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  at  least  fifteen  days  before  the  annual 
election  for  commissioners,  in  each  year  to  prepare  and  report  to  the  common 
council  true  and  correct  statements  of  the  receipts  and  disbursements  of  moneys 
under  and  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  this  act  during  the  preceding  year, 
in  which  account  shall  be  stated,  under  appropriate  heads : 

1.  The  moneys  raised  by  the  common  council  under  the  ninth  section  of 
this  act; 

2.  The  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  the  city  from  the  county 
treasurer ; 

3.  The  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  the  city  under  the  ninth  section  of 
this  act; 

4.  All  other  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  said  city,  subject  to  the  order 
of  the  board,  specifying  the  sources  from  which  they  shall  have  been  derived ; 

5.  The  manner  in  which  such  sums  of  money  shall  have  been  expended,  speci- 
fying the  amount  under  each  head  of  expenditure ;  and  the  common  council 
shall,  ten  days  before  such  election,  cause  the  same  to  be  published  in  all  of  the 
newspapers  of  said  city. 

§  21.  The  common  council  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to  pass 
such  ordinances  and  regulations  as  the  said  board  of  education  may  report  as 
necessary  for  the  protection,  preservation,  safe  keeping  and  care  of  the  school- 
houses,  lots,  sites  appurtenances  and  appendages,  libraries,  and  all  necessary 
property  belonging  to  or  connected  with  the  schools  of  said  city,  and  to  impose 
proper  penalties  for  the  violation  thereof,  subject  to  the  restrictions  and  limita- 
tions contained  in  the  act  to  incorprate  the  said  city ;  and  all  such  penalties 
shall  be  collected  in  the  same  manner  that  the  penalties  for  the  violations  of  the 


432  PHELPS. 

city  ordinances  are  by  law  collected;  and  when  collected  shall  be  paid  to  the 
treasurer  of  the  city,  to  the  credit  of  the  said  board  of  education,  and  shall  be 
subject  to  their  order  in  the  same  manner  as  other  moneys  raised  pursuant  to  the 
provisions  of  this  act. 

§  22.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  clerk  of  said  city,  immediately  after  the  elec- 
tion of  any  person  as  commissioner  of  common  schools,  personally  or  in  writing 
to  notify  him  of  his  election ;  and  if  any  sucli  person  shall  not,  within  ten  days 
after  receiving  such  notice  of  his  election,  take  and  subscribe  the  constitutional 
oath,  and  file  the  same  with  the  clerk  of  said  city,  the  common  council  may  con- 
sider it  as  a  refusal  to  serve,  and  proceed  to  supply  the  vacancy  occasioned  by 
such  refusal ;  and  the  person  so  refusing  shall  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  city  trea- 
surer, for  the  benefit  of  the  schools  of  said  city,  a  penalty  of  ten  dollars. 

"  §  23.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board  of  education  to  ascertain  and  report 
to  the  common  council  of  said  city  the  amount  of  any  and  all  indebtedness  of 
each  of  the  common  school  districts  within  said  city,  and  to  whom  due  and  when 
and  how  payable ;  and  the  common  council  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty,  in  each  year  that  any  such  indebtedness  shall  become  due,  to  cause  the 
sums  so  becoming  due  from  any  of  said  districts  to  be  assessed  upon  and  collected 
from  the  taxable  property  within  said  city,  for  the  payment  of  such  indebtedness, 
in  the  same  manner  that  other  taxes  are  assessed  and  collected  for  the  use  of  said 
board  of  education,  and  in  addition  to  the  sums  authorized  and  required  to  be 
raised  under  the  ninth  section  of  this  act." 

"  §  24.  The  connection  of  territory'  within  and  without  said  city,  in  joint  dis- 
tricts, is  hereby  annulled ;  and  the  property  of  said  districts,  so  far  as  the  same  is 
situated  within  said  city,  shall  be  disposed  of  in  the  manner  now  provided  by  law 
in  the  case  where  a  district  is  annulled,  except  that  the  portion  of  the  proceeds 
of  such  property  as  would  by  law  be  apportioned  among  the  taxable  inhabitants  of 
said  districts  residing  within  the  city  of  Oswego  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer 
of  said  city,  to  the  credit  of  the  said  board  of  education,  and  shall  be  expended 
byr  said  board  in  the  purchase,  repairs  or  improvement  of  school-houses,  lots, 
sites,  or  school  furniture,  apparatus  or  appurtenances." 

§  25.  This  act  shall  take  effect  immediately  on  the  passage  thereof,  and  all  acts 
and  parts  of  acts  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act  are  hereby  repealed. 


PHELPS. 

[  Laws  of  1855,  chap.  553.  ] 

Skction  1.  The  inhabitants  of  school  district  number  eight,  in  the  town  of 
Phelps,  county  of  Ontario,  shall  at  the  next  election  of  a  trustee  of  said  district, 
and  at  such  election  every  third  year  thereafter,  elect  two  additional  trustees 
thereof,  making  the  whole  number  of  trustees  thereof  five.  The  two  additional 
trustees  shall  respectively  hold  their  offices  for  three  years,  and  until  others  are 
elected  in  their  respective  places. 

§  2.  The  trustees  of  said  district  shall  have  authority  to  make  regulations 
respecting  the  attendance  of  the  children  of  the  district  in  the  departments 
thereof,  the  transfer  of  them  from  one  department  to  another,  and  the  instruction 
and  studies  to  be  given  and  perused  in  the  departments  thereof. 

§  3.  The  said  trustees  and  their  successors  in  office  are  hereby  created  a  body 
corporate,  by  the  name  of  "  Phelps  union  and  classical  school,"  and  empowered 
to  establish  and  organize  a  classical  school  by  that  name  in  said  district  and  vil- 
lage of  Phelps;  which  school  shall  be  subject  to  the  visitation  of  the  regents  of 
the  university  of  this  state,  and  to  all  laws  and  regulations  applicable  to  the 
incorporated  academies  thereof,  and  shall  be  entitled  to  all  the  privileges  of  such 
academies,  and  to  share  in  the  distribution  of  the  moneys  of  the  literature  fund 
of  this  state,  as  the  academies  thereof;  provided  however  that  Ibis  act  shall 
not  affect  the  rights  and  duties  of  said  trustees  and  district  under  the  statutes  of 
this  state  relating  to  common  schools. 


POUGHKEErSIE.  433 


POUGHKEEPSIE. 
[Laws  of  1854,  chap.  90.  J 

TITLE    X. OF    SCHOOLS    AND    THE    BOARD    OF    EDUCATION. 

Section  1.  There  shall  be  elected  in  said  city  at  every  annual  election  four 
commissioners  of  schools,  who  shall  hold  their  office  for  three  years.  At  the  first 
elections  to  be  held  under  this  act,  twelve  commissioners  shall  be  chosen ;  and  at 
the  first  meeting  of  the  board  of  education,  hereby  constituted,  after  such  election, 
the  said  commissioners  shall  draw  lots  for  their  terms  of  office,  so  that  four  shall 
draw  to  hold  for  one,  four  for  two,  and  four  for  three  years,  and  their  respective 
terms  of  office  shall  expire  accordingly. 

§  2.  In  case  of  vacancy  in  the  office  of  any  such  commissioners,  or  in  case  no 
person  shall  be  elected  thereto  by  reason  of  two  or  more  persons  having  an  equal 
number  of  votes,  the  common  council  shall  appoint  an  inhabitant  of  the  city  to 
fill  the  same,  and  the  person  appointed  shall  hold  his  office  until  the  next  election 
of  commissioners  of  common  schools. 

§  3.  The  said  commissioners  shall  meet  on  the  Tuesday  next  after  the  annual 
election  and  organize  as  a  board  of  education ;  they  shall  elect  one  of  their  num- 
ber to  be  president,  who  shall  possess  the  powers  and  discharge  the  duties  of  a 
town  superintendent  of  schools,  so  far  as  the  same  may  be  necessary,  and  not 
inconsistent  with  this  act ;  they  may  employ  a  clerk  at  a  reasonable  compensa- 
tion, and  a  librarian  to  have  the  charge  of  the  public  library,  who  shall  be  paid  a 
reasonable  salary  out  of  the  school  funds  of  the  city.  They  shall  have  the  charge 
and  control  of  the  public  schools  in  the  city  of  Poughkeepsie,  and  shall  exercise 
the  powers  and  discharge  the  duties,  in  respect  to  said  schools,  both  of  trustees 
of  school  district  and  of  town  superintendent  under  the  statutes  of  this  state ;  they 
shall  also  have  charge  and  control  of  the  district  school  library,  which  shall  be 
hereafter  known  as  the  city  library  of  Poughkeepsie.  and  may  make  all  necessary 
and  proper  regulations  concerning  the  same ;  and  they  may  appropriate  for  the 
benefit  of  said  library,  out  of  the  moneys  annually  raised  in  said  city  by  the  school 
tax,  an  amount  not  exceeding  one  hundred  and  fifty  dollars  in  addition  to  the 
library  money  received  from  the  state. 

§  4.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  education  to  make  to  the  common 
council  of  the  city  of  Poughkeepsie  an  annual  report,  on  or  befere  the  first  Tues- 
day in  February  of  each  year,  setting  forth  the  number  and  condition  of  each 
school  under  their  charge,  a  detail  of  all  the  expenses  and  liabilities  incurred,  with 
all  disbursements  made  by  them  during  the  past  year,  and  all  other  particulars 
relating  to  the  schools.  In  their  annual  report,  the  said  board  of  education  shall 
determine  and  certify  the  amount  of  money  which,  when  added  to  the  money 
annually  apportioned  to  the  said  corporation  out  of  the  funds  belonging  to  the 
state,  will  in  their  judgment  be  necessary  to  support  all  the  schools  under  their 
superintendence  for  the  then  current  year.  The  said  amount  shall  in  no  case 
exceed  three  times  the  amount  which  shall  have  been  apportioned  out  of  the  funds 
belonging  to  the  state,  as  aforesaid,  for  the  year  next  preceding.  The  said  coun- 
cil shall  cause  said  report  of  the  board  of  education,  with  a  statement  of  the  city 
chamberlain,  showing  the  amount  received  by  him  during  the  same  year  for  the 
support  of  schools  from  all  sources  and  the  disbursement  or  expenditure  thereof, 
to  be  published  once  in  every  newspaper  printed  in  said  city. 

§  5.  If  such  amount  so  certified  shall  not  exceed  four  thousand  dollars,  the 
council  of  said  city  shall  have  power  to  levy  and  collect  the  same,  or  any  less 
amount  which  they  may  deem  proper,  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner 
as  other  general  city  taxes  are  levied  and  raised ;  and  a  separate  column  shall  be 
provided  in  the  general  tax  roll  of  said  city,  in  which  shall  be  inserted  the  amount 
of  tax  assessed  for  the  support  of  schools. 

§  6.  If  the  said  board  of  education  shall  at  any  time  recommend  the  raising 
of  more  than  four  thousand  dollars,  in  any  year  for  the  support  of  schools,  the 

fCoDE.]  55 


434  POTJGHKEEPSIE. 

said  council  shall  submit  the  question  —  whether  the  excess  above  four  thousand 
dollars  shall  be  raised  —  to  the  electors  of  said  city,  being  tax  payers  entitled  to 
vote  at  special  tax  elections,  according  to  the  provisions  of  this  act  at  an  election 
to  be  held  in  the  manner  in  which  special  taxes  are  directed  to  be  submitted  to 
said  electors  according  to  the  provisions  of  the  act.  If  a  majority  of  the  votes 
cast  at  such  special  election  shall  be  given  in  favor  of  raising  the  amount  recom- 
mended by  the  board  of  education,  the  same  shall  be  levied  and  collected  in  the 
manner  prescribed  by  this  act  for  school  taxes.  If  a  majority  of  such  votes  shall 
be  given  against  raising  such  amount,  the  said  council  shall  proceed  to  raise  such 
amount  as  they  shall  deem  necessary,  but  not  exceeding  four  thousand  dollars, 
in  the  manner  provided  in  this  act  for  the  support  of  schools. 

§  7.  If  the  said  board  of  education  shall  deem  the  purchase  or  erection  of  an 
additional  school-house  proper  or  necessary,  they  may  recommend  the  same  in 
their  annual  report,  stating  the  location  they  propose,  the  cost  of  a  lot,  and  a  plan 
and  estimate  for  a  building.  The  council  shall  theteupon  submit  the  question  of 
the  purchase  or  erection  of  such  school-house  to  the  electors,  being  tax  payers 
entitled  to  vote  special  taxes  under  this  act,  at  an  election  to  be  held  in  the  man- 
ner provided  by  this  act  in  voting  special  taxes.  The  said  electors  shall  vote  by 
ballots,  on  which  shall  be  written  or  printed,  For  a  school-house  and  Against  a 
school-hou'-e  ;  if  a  majority  of  the  votes  at  such  election  shall  be  cast  for  a  school- 
house,  and  not  otherwise,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  common  council  to  purchase 
a  lot  and  building  or  to  purchase  a  lot  and  erect  a  school  in  such  location  as  they 
may  deem  best;  the  cost  of  building  and  furnishing  such  school-house  shall  in 
no  case  exceed  three  thousand  dollars,  and  the  expense  thereof  may  be  defrayed 
by  a  general  tax,  which  shall  be  levied  and  collected  in  the  same  manner  with 
other  school  taxes,  or  by  a  loan  on  the  credit  of  the  city,  which  the  mayor  and 
council  shall  have  power  to  pledge  for  that  purpose,  in  the  same  manner  as  is  by 
this  act  provided  in  relation  to  loans  by  said  city,  as  the  said  council  shall  deem 
best. 

§  8.  The  chamberlain  of  the  city  of  Poughkeepsie  is  hereby  designated  as  the 
person  to  receive  all  public  money  which  said  city  or  the  schools  therein  are  or 
shall  be  entitled  to  receive  from  the  state.  All  moneys  levied  and  raised  for  the 
support  of  common  schools  in  said  city,  shall  be  paid  to  said  chamberlain,  and  he 
shall  pay  out  all  the  said  moneys  which  shall  so  be  in  his  hands  for  the  support 
of  schools,  upon  the  resolutions  of  the  board  of  education,  certified  by  the  clerk, 
or  upon  drafts  or  orders  of  said  board,  made  in  pursuance  of  such  resolutions, 
and  referring  thereto,  signed  by  the  presiding  officer  of  said  board  and  counter- 
signed by  the  clerk  thereof,  and  not  otherwise. 

§  9.  The  board  of  education  shall  cause  an  enumeration  of  all  the  children 
within  said  city,  between  the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one  years  of  age,  to  be 
made  annually  by  or  before  the  first  day  of  July  in  every  year,  and  the  president 
of  said  board  shall  report  the  number  of  such  children  at  the  time  and  in  the 
manner  required  by  law  of  town  superintendents  of  schools.  [  The  residue  of 
this  section  is  repealed  by  chap.  180  of  1856,  Nos.  30  and  31,  ante.] 

§  10.  The  said  board  may  establish,  and  cause  to  be  kept,  a  separate  school  for 
the  instruction  of  colored  children. 

§  11.  The  services  of  the  board  of  education  designated  by  this  act  shall  be 
gratuitous,  except  that  the  president  shall  receive  ten  dollars  for  making  the 
report  and  performing  such  other  duties  as  are  by  this  act  directed  to  be  performed 
by  him  as  a  town  superintendent  of  schools.  Any  person  elected  a  member  of 
this  board  who  shall  refuse  to  qualify  and  serve  or  to  perform  the  duties  of  his 
office,  shall  forfeit  and  pay  ten  dollais,  to  be  recovered  in  a  proper  action  to  be 
brought  for  the  same  by  the  city,  and  the  money  to  be  applied  to  the  benefit  of 
the  city  library,  under  the  direction  of  the  board  of  education. 

§  12.  If  any  person  elected  a  commissioner  of  schools  shall  resign  his  office 
after  having  duly  qualified,  such  resignation  shall  not  be  .accepted  by  the  common 
council,  to  whom  all  such  resignations  shall  be  made,  unless  the  person  desiring 
to  resign  shall  pay  to  the  city  chamberlain  the  sum  of  ten  dollars,  which  shall 
be  applied  for  the  benefit  of  the  city  library  by  the  board  of  education. 


PULASKI.  435 

§  13.  The  said  board  may  make  regulations  respecting  the  use.  and  imposing 
fines  or  penalties  for  or  abuse  of  books  belonging  to  the  city  library;  and  any 
person  incurring  any  such  fine  or  penalty  shall  be  liable  to  an  action  for  tho 
same  by  the  city,  and  the  amount  received  shall  be  applied  as  aforesaid  to  the 
use  of  the  library. 

§  14.  The  title  to  all  property,  real  or  personal,  now  held  by  the  board  of  edu- 
cation of  the  village  of  Poughkecpsie  is  hereby  vested  in  and  confirmed  to  the  city 
of  Poughkeepsie  hereby  incorporated. 

By  section  6,  chap.  316  of  1852,  the  children  instructed  in  the  schools  of  the 
Poughkeepsie  Female  Guardian  Society  are  to  participate  in  the  apportionment 
of  the  school  fund  according  to  the  average  number  in  attendance. 


PULASKI. 

[  Laws  of  1853,  chap.  305,  as  amended  by  chap.  5G7  of  1855.  ] 

Section  1.  All  that  part  of  school  districts  numbers  twenty-five,  seven  and  thirty, 
lying  within  the  village  of  Pulaski,  and  the  parts  of  the  districts  adjacent  thereto, 
lying  within  the  boundaries  of  said  village,  are  hereby  consolidated,  and  shall 
hereafter  form  but  one  school  district,  to  be  called  "  The  Pulaski  school  district," 
provided  that  the  consolidation  of  said  districts  and  parts  of  districts  into  one 
district  shall  not  interfere  with  the  rights,  privileges  and  duties  of  the  trustees 
of  the  said  respective  districts  and  parts  of  districts  in  relation  to  the  past  winter 
terms  of  said  schools  respectively  ;  but  for  the  purpose  of  closing  said  terms  and 
collecting  and  paying  teachers'  wages  and  all  other  charges  relating  thereto, 
or  any  other  arrearages  or  debts,  their  powers  and  duties  shall  remain  and  con- 
tinue as  if  this  act  had  not  passed. 

§  2.  Charles  H.  Cross,  Hiram  Murdock,  Anson  R.  Jones,  George  Garley,  Don 
A.  King,  Anson  Malby,  Newton  M.  Wardwell,  Samuel  Woodruff'  and  William  H. 
Lester  are  hereby  appointed  trustees  of  said  district,  to  be  divided  by  lot,  at  their 
first  meeting,  into  three  classes,  to  be  numbered  one,  two  and  three,  to  hold  their 
offices  as  follows :  class  number  one  until  the  next  annual  meeting,  which  shall 
be  held  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  October  next,  at  which  there  shall  be  elected  three 
trustees  to  supply  their  place ;  class  number  two  until  the  next  annual  meeting 
thereafter;  and  class  number  three  until  the  next  annual  meeting  thereafter;  and 
at  each  annual  meeting  there  shall  be  elected  three  trustees  to  supply  the  place 
of  those  whose  terms  shall  then  expire.  If  at  any  meeting  so  annually  held  there 
shall  be  a  failure  to  elect  said  trustees,  the  class  whose  term  would  then  expire 
shall  hold  until  others  are  duly  elected  in  their  stead.  Notice  of  the  annual  or 
any  special  district  meeting  may  hereafter  be  given  by  posting  the  same  in  three 
public  places  in  said  village,  and  also  publishing  in  the  newspaper  printed  in  said 
village,  if  any  shall  be  published  therein,  and  the  same  shall  be  deemed  a  valid 
and  sufficient  notice  for  all  purposes. 

§  3.  The  trustees  of  said  district  and  their  successors  in  office  shall  constitute 
a  board  of  education  for  said  district,  and,  for  the  purposes  of  this  act,  in  addition 
to  the  present  powers  and  duties  of  trustees,  are  hereby  constituted  a  body 
politic  and  corporate,  by  the  name  and  style  of  "  The  Board  of  Education  of  the 
village  of  Pulaski;"  and  said  corporation  shall  have  power  to  establish  and 
organize  a  classical  school  in  said  village,  to  be  known  by  the  name  of  "  The 
Pulaski  academy,"  and  such  classical  school  shall  be  subject  to  all  laws  and 
regulations  applicable  to  other  incorporated  academies  of  this  state,  and  shall 
be  entitled  to  share  in  the  distribution  of  the  moneys  of  the  literature  fund 
upon  the  same  terms  as  other  academies  of  this  state ;  and  the  regents  of  the 
university  shall  recognize  said  academy  as  such  as  soon  as  the  required  sum  of 
money  shall  be  expended  in  buildings  and  competent  teachers  employed  therein. 


43G  PULASKI. 

§  4.  Such  board  of  education  shall  appoint  one  of  their  number  president  of 
said  board,  who  shall  preside  at  the  meetings  of  said  board  when  present;  when 
absent  a  president  pro  tempore  shall  be  appointed  in  his  stead.  They  shall  also 
appoint  one  of  their  number  secretary,  who  shall  record  all  the  acts,  doings  and 
resolutions  of  said  board,  and,  in  the  absence  of  the  secretary,  a  secretary  pro 
tempore  shall  be  appointed  to  discharge  such  duties.  They  shall  also  appoint  a 
collector,  librarian  and  treasurer  of  said  district,  who  shall  respectively  hold  their 
offices  one  year  from  their  appointment  and  until  others  are  appointed  in  their 
places,  unless  sooner  removed  by  said  board ;  such  collector,  librarian  and 
treasurer  shall  each,  within  ten  days  after  notice  of  their  appointment  in  writing, 
and  before  the  entering  upon  the  duties  of  their  office,  execute  and  deliver  to  said 
board  of  education  a  bond,  in  such  penalty  and  with  such  sureties  as  said  board 
may  require,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  the  duties  of  his  office;  in 
case  such  bond  shall  not  be  given  within  ten  days  after  receiving  such  notice, 
such  office  shall  thereby  become  vacated,  and  said  board  shall  thereupon  make 
an  appointment  to  supply  such  vacancy. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  fill  any  vacancy  which 
may  happen  by  the  reason  of  death  or  the  removal  from  the  said  district,  or 
otherwise,  and  the  officer  so  appointed  shall  hold  his  office  for  the  unexpired  time 
of  the  person  to  supply  whose  place  he  shall  be  so  appointed. 

§  6.  Said  board  of  education  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all 
the  duties,  in  respect  to  said  district,  that  the  trustees  of  common  schools  now 
possess  or  are  subject  to,  and  such  other  powers  and  duties  as  are  given  or  im- 
posed by  this  act,  in  addition  to  the  powers  now  vested  in  them  by  law. 

§  7.  The  taxable  inhabitants  of  said  district,  at  any  annual,  special  or  adjourned 
district  meeting,  legally  held,  may  vote  to  raise  such  sum  of  money  as  they  shall 
deem  expedient,  not  exceeding  nine  thousand  dollars,  for  the  purpose  of  purchasing 
a  site,  and  building  a  school-house  or  school-houses  in  said  district,  or  for  the  pur- 
pose of  purchasing  any  suitable  building  for  such  purpose,  and  furnishing  the  same 
with  the  necessary  furniture,  maps,  globes  and  other  suitable  apparatus,  and  direct 
the  trustees  to  cause  the  same  to  be  levied  and  raised,  by  tax  upon  the  real  and 
personal  estate  within  the  bounds  of  said  district  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation 
for  the  ordinary  taxes  of  said  village  or  for  town  or  county  charges,  by  instal- 
ments, and  make  out  a  tax  for  the  collection  of  the  same  as  often  as  such  instal- 
ments shall  become  due;  and  the  legal  voters  at  any  such  meeting  are  authorized 
to  fix  the  compensation  for  collecting  and  paying  over  to  the  treasurer  of  said 
board  the  amount  so  levied.  They  shall  have  power  also  in  like  manner  to  raise 
such  sum  or  sums  as  shall  be  deemed  necessary  for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages 
or  the  general  purposes  of  education  in  said  villase.  [As  amended  by  §  1,  chap. 
667  of  1855.  ] 

§  2.  The  inhabitants  of  the  town  of  Richland  are  hereby  authorized  to  raise  by 
tax  on  the  said  town,  in  the  same  manner  as  other  town  taxes  are  levied  and  col- 
lected, a  sum  not  exceeding  four  thousand  dollars  by  annual  instalments  or  other 
to  be  determined  by  said  inhabitants  at  any  town  meeting  legally  assembled,  and 
the  same,  when  so  raised  and  collected,  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  the 
board  of  education  in  said  village,  to  be  expended  by  said  board  for  the  purposes 
mentioned  in  the  first  section  of  this  act.  [Sec.  2,  chap.  567  of  1855.  The  section 
referred  to  is  the  preceding.] 

§  8.  The  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  to  obtain  by  loan  the  whole 
or  any  part  of  the  money,  legally  voted  by  said  district,  for  the  purchase  of  a  site 
and  the  erection  of  buildings,  and  secure  the  payment  of  the  same  by  their  official 
bond. 

§  9.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  empowered  to  sell 
at  public  auction  to  the  highest  bidder,  or  at  private  sale,  the  school-houses  and 
sites  thereof  belonging  to  or  situated  in  said  district,  the  title  to  all  of  which  is 
hereby  vested  in  them,  and  hold  and  use  the  proceeds  therefor  for  the  benefit  of 
said  district. 

§  10.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  empowered  and  authorized  to 
make  such  by-laws  and  regulations  as  they  may  deem  necessary  to  secure  the 


PULASKI.  437 

prosperity,  order  and  government  of  said  school,  and  to  divide  the  same  into  pri- 
mary and  higher  departments,  and  regulate  the  transfer  of  scholars  from  one 
department  to  the  other,  and  provide  suitable  instructors  for  each  department; 
direct  what  text  books  shall  be  used  in  the  same ;  to  establish  such  primary  or 
infant  school  or  schools  as  they  shall  deem  requisite  and  expedient,  and  to  alter 
and  discontinue  the  same ;  to  purchase  or  hire  school-houses,  rooms,  lots  or  sites 
for  school-houses,  and  to  fence  and  improve  the  same  as  they  may  think  proper ; 
to  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furniture  and 
appendages ;  to  purchase  fuel  and  all  other  necessaries  for  the  use  of  the  school 
or  schools  in  said  district,  and  to  pay  the  contingent  expenses  thereof;  to  pay  the 
wages  of  all  teachers  employed  in  the  school  or  schools  in  said  district  out  of  the 
public  money  and  funds  applicable  thereto;  to  fix  and  regulate  the  terms  of 
tuition  fees  in  said  primary  and  other  higher  branches  in  said  school  or  schools ; 
to  sue  for  and  collect  in  their  corporate  name  any  sum  of  money  or  tuition  fees 
due  to  said  district ;  and  all  contracts  made  by  them  in  their  official  capacity 
shall  be  binding  upon  them  and  their  successors  in  office;  to  receive  and  apply 
to  the  use  of  said  school  or  schools,  or  any  department  thereof,  any  gift,  legacy, 
bequest  or  annuities  given  or  bequeathed  to  said  board,  and  to  apply  the  same 
according  to  the  instruction  of  the  donor  or  testator ;  to  take  and  hold  any  real 
estate  given  or  bequeathed  to  said  board  for  the  purpose  of  said  school  or  schools, 
or  any  department  thereof,  and  apply  the  proceeds  thereof  according  to  the  terms 
and  instructions  of  the  donor  or  testator;  to  have  in  all  respects  the  supervision, 
management  and  control  of  said  school  or  schools,  and  any  and  every  department 
thereof,  and  hire,  pay  and  discharge  any  teacher  or  teachers  employed  by  them 
in  said  school  or  schools  or  department  thereof. 

§  11.  The  report  now  required  by  law  to  be  made  to  the  town  superintendents 
of  common  schools  shall  be  made  by  said  board  of  education,  and  the  public 
moneys  payable  to  said  district  shall  be  payable  by  him  to  the  treasurer  thereof. 

§  12.  Said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  and  are  hereby  authorized  to 
receive  into  said  academy,  and  cause  to  be  instructed  therein,  any  pupil  or  pupils 
residing  in  or  out  of  said  district,  and  to  regulate  and  establish  the  terms  of  tuition 
fees  of  such  resident  or  non-resident  pupils,  and  said  board  of  education  shall  have 
power  to  regulate  the  tuition  fees  and  rates  of  charges  for  instruction,  and  to 
graduate  the  same  according  to  the  branches  pursued  in  the  higher  English  and 
classical  departments  of  said  academy ;  the  tuition  fees  in  said  academy  shall  not 
exceed  three  dollars  each  per  quarter  for  pupils  whose  parents  or  guardians  reside 
within  the  territory  of  said  district ;  for  all  other  pupils  said  tuition  fee  shall  not 
be  more  than  five  dollars  each  per  quarter. 

§  13.  After  applying  the  public  moneys  applicable  thereto  to  the  support  of 
said  school  or  schools  in  said  districts,  in  payment  of  the  salaries  and  wages  of 
teachers  employed  therein,  said  board  of  education  shall,  unless  the  same  shall 
have  been  previously  raised,  cause  such  additional  sum  as  may  be  required,  to 
pay  said  wages  and  salaries  of  teachers  and  other  contingent  expenses  necessary 
to  the  support  of  such  academy  and  school  or  schools,  to  be  assessed  and  levied 
upon  the  taxable  property  of  said  district,  and  collected  in  the  manner  provided 
by  law  for  the  collection  and  assessment  of  school  district  taxes  in  the  several 
towns  of  this  state  ;  not  more  than  two  taxes  for  such  purpose  shall  ever  be  raised 
in  one  year  ;  warrants  for  the  collection  of  taxes  in  said  district  to  be  issued  under 
the  hand  and  seal  of  the  president  or  the  major  part  of  said  board. 

§  14.  All  moneys  raised  in  said  district  for  the  purpose  of  said  school  or  schools, 
and  all  moneys  to  be  received  by  such  district  from  the  common  school  fund  or 
other  source,  "shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  said  district,  to  be  paid  by  him  on 
the  warrant  of  said  board  of  education,  and  to  be  applied  by  them  for  the  use  of 
said  school  or  schools,  according  to  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  15.  The  libraries  of  said  districts  number  twenty-five,  seven  and  thirty  are 
hereby  consolidated  into  one,  and  the  title  thereto  vested  in  said  board  of  educa- 
tion, as  trustees  of  said  district;  and  the  library  money  payable  to  said  district 
shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  thereof,  and  drawn  on  the  warrant  of  and  expended 
by  said  board  for  the  use  of  said  trustees. 


438  ROCHESTER. 


ROCHESTER. 

[  Cliap.  202,  Laws  of  1850,  as  amended  by  chap.  389  of  1851,  chap.  306  of  1852, 
chap.  240  of  1853  am?  chap.  568  o/  1855.] 

By  §  9  of  title  II.,  two  commissioners  of  common  schools  are  required  to  be 
annually  elected  in  each  ward  on  the  first  Tuesday  in  March. 

"  For  the  election  of  commissioners  of  common  schools  the  electors  of  each 
ward  shall  deposit  their  ballots,  containing  the  name  of  one  person  designated  for 
the  office ;  the  two  persons  having  the  highest  number  of  votes  shall  be  declared 
to  be  elected;  no  ballot  which  contains  more  than  one  name  shall  be  counted." 
§  17.  By  §  30,  in  case  a  vacancy  shall  occur  in  the  office,  "  the  common  council 
may,  in  their  discretion,  fill  such  vacancy  by  the  appointment  of  a  suitable  person 
who  is  an  elector,  and  if  appointed  for  a  ward  or  district,  who  is  a  resident  of  the 
ward  or  district  for  which  he  shall  be  appointed  ;  and  any  officer  appointed  to  fill 
a  vacancy,  if  the  office  is  elective,  shall  hold,  by  virtue  of  such  appointment,  only 
until  the  first  Monday  of  April  next  succeeding.  If  an  elective  officer,  whose 
office  shall  have  become  vacant,  was  one  of  a  class,  a  successor  for  the  unexpired 
term  shall  be  elected  at  the  next  annual  election." 

By  §  32  every  person  so  elected  or  appointed  to  the  office  of  commissioner  shall, 
before  he  enters  on  the  duties  of  his  office,  and  within  five  days  after  being  notified 
of  such  election  or  appointment,  take  the  oath  of  office  prescribed  by  the  consti- 
tution of  the  state,  before  some  officer  authorized  to  take  affidavits  to  be  read  in 
courts  of  justice,  and  file  the  same  with  the  clerk  of  the  city:  and  by  §  34 
his  neglect  to  do  so,  or  if  required  by  the  common  council  to  execute  an  official 
bond  or  undertaking,  the  neglect  to  execute  and  file  the  same  in  manner  and  within 
the  time  prescribed  by  the  common  council  shall  he  deemed  a  refusal  to  serve. 

TITLE    VI SCHOOLS    AND    BOARD    OF    EDUCATION. 

§  161.  The  several  wards  of  the  city  of  Rochester  shall  constitute  one  school 
district,  for  all  purposes  except  as  herein  otherwise  provided,  and  the  schools 
therein  shall  be  free  to  all  children  between  the  ages  of  five  and  sixteen  [twenty- 
one]  residing  in  such  wards. 

§  162.  The  titles  of  the  school  houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  books,  apparatus 
and  appurtenances,  and  all  other  school  property  in  this  act  mentioned,  shall, 
within  three  months  from  the  passage  of  this  act,  be  transferred  and  conveyed  by 
the  trustees  of  the  several  school  districts  in  the  said  city  to  the  said  city  of 
Rochester. 

§  163.  The  several  school  districts  now  in  the  city  of  Rochester  shall,  within 
ihrce  months  from  the  passage  of  this  act,  deliver  over  to  and  place  in  the  care 
of  the  board  of  education,  hereinafter  mentioned,  all  school  district  records, 
account  books,  vouchers,  contracts,  papers  and  other  school  porperty ;  and  the 
said  school  officers  of  the  said  city  and  the  several  school  districts  thereof  shall 
continue  in  office  until  the  unfinished  business  of  said  districts  shall  have  been 
finally  closed  up  and  settled,  not  exceeding  three  months  after  the  passage  of  this 
act,  with  all  the  power  and  duties  now  by  law  imposed  upon  them  for  the  purpose 
of  closing  such  unfinished  business. 

§  164.  The  common  council  of  said  city  may,  upon  the  recommendation  of  the 
board  of  education  hereinafter  mentioned,  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or 
sites,  or  any  other  school  property  now  or  hereafter  belonging  to  said  city,  upon 


ROCHESTER.  439 

such  le "ins  as  the  said  common  council  may  deem  reasonable.  The  proceeds  of 
all  such  sales  shall  be  paid  to  the  city  treasurer  of  the  city,  and  shall  he  by  the 
said  common  council  again  expended  in  the  purchase,  repairs  or  improve- 
ments of  other  school-houses,  lots,  sites  or  school  furniture,  apparatus  or  appur- 
tenances. 

§  165.  The  commissioners  of  common  schools  in  said  city  shall  constitute  a 
board  to  be  styled  the  "Beard  of  Education  of  the  city  of  Rochester,"  which 
shall  be  a  corporate  body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  upon 
them  by  virtue  of  this  act;  they  shall  meet  on  the  first  Monday  of  each  and 
every  month,  and  as  much  oftener  as  they  shall  from  time  to  time  appoint;  a 
majority  of  the  said  board  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of 
business.  The  said  board  shall  appoint  one  of  their  number  president,  who  shall, 
when  preent,  preside  at  all  the  meetings  of  said  board,  and  shall  have  power  to 
call  special  meetings  of  the  board,  in  the  manner  described  by  this  act  for  the 
calling  of  special  meetings  of  the  common  council.  In  the  absence  of  the  presi- 
dent, the  board  shall  appoint  some  other  member  to  preside  at  such  meetings  and 
perform  the  duties  of  the  president.  No  member  of  said  board  of  education 
shall,  during  the  period  for  which  he  was  elected,  be  appointed  to  or  be  competent 
to  hold  any  office  of  which  the  emoluments  are  paid  from  the  city  treasury,  or 
paid  by  fees  directed  to  be  paid  by  any  act  or  ordinance  of  the  board  of  education, 
or  be  directly  or  indirectly  interested  in  any  contract,  as  principal,  surety  or 
otherwise,  the  expenses  or  consideration  whereof  are  to  he  paid  under  any 
ordinance  of  the  board  of  education. 

§  166.  The  said  commissioners  shall  annually  appoint  a  city  superintendent  of 
common  schools,  who  shall  hold  his  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board,  and 
whose  compensation  shall  he  fixed  by  the  said  board ;  the  said  superintendent 
shall  officiate  as  clerk  of  the  board,  and  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings 
of  the  board,  and  perform  such  other  duties  as  the  board  may  prescribe.  The 
said  record,  or  a  transcript  thereof  certified  by  the  president  and  clerk,  shall  be 
received  in  all  courts  as  prima  facie  evidence  of  facts  therein  set  forth  ;  and  such 
records,  and  all  the  books,  accounts,  vouchers  and  papers  of  said  board  shall  at 
all  times  be  subject  to  the  inspection  of  the  common  council  and  of  any  committee 
thereof. 

§  167.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be 
their  duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time,  by  tax  to  be  levied  equally  upon  all  the  real 
and  personal  estate  in  said  city  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  for  the  ordinary 
city  taxes  or  for  city  or  county  charges,  such  sum  or  sums  of  money  as  may  be 
necessary  or  proper  for  any  or  all  the  following  purposes : 

1.  To  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites  for  school-houses; 

2.  To  build,  p)trchase,  lease,  enlarge,  improve,  alter  and  repair  school-houses 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances; 

3.  To  purchase,  improve,  exchange  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furniture 
and  appendages; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  common  schools ; 

5.  To  pay  the  wages  of  teachers  due  after  the  application  of  the  public  moneys 
which  may  by  law  be  appropriated  and  provided  for  that  purpose;  provided, 
nevertheless,  that  the  tax  to  be  levied  as  aforesaid  and  collected  by  virtue  of  this 
act  shall  he  collected  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner  as  other  city 
taxes ; 

6.  And  the  amount  to  be  raised  for  teachers'  wages  and  contingent  expenses,  in 
any  one  year,  shall  not  be  less  than  one  dollar  nor  more  than  one  dollar  and 
seventy-five  cents  for  every  scholar  of  school  age  within  said  city,  according  to 
the  annual  enumeration  of  the  previous  year.  Nor  shall  the  amount  to  be  raised 
in  any  one  year  to  lease,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses  and  their  out- 
houses and  appurtenances  exceed  three  thousand  dollars.  Nor  shall  the  amount 
to  be  raised  in  any  one  year  to  purchase  and  improve  sites,  and  build  or  enlarge 
school-houses,  exceed  ten  thousand  dollars  ;  and  the  common  council  of  said  city 
are  authorized  and  directed,  when  necessary,  to  raise  by  loan,  in  anticipation  of 
the  taxes,  the  moneys  so  to  be  raised,  collected  and  levied  as  aforesaid. 


440  ROCHESTER. 

§  168.  All  moneys  to  be  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  all 
school  moneys  by  law  appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  city,  shall  be  paid  to 
the  city  treasurer  thereof,  who,  together  with  their  sureties  upon  his  official  bond, 
shall  be  accountable  therefor  in  the  same  manner  as  for  other  moneys  of  said 
city.  The  said  city  treasurer  shall  be  liable  to  the  same  penalties  for  any  official 
misconduct,  in  relation  to  the  said  moneys,  as  for  any  similar  misconduct  in  rela- 
tion to  other  moneys  of  said  city. 

§  169.  The  said  "  board"  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty: 

1.  To  establish  and  organize  in  the  several  wards  of  said  city  such  and  so  many 
schools  (including  the  common  schools  now  existing  therein)  as  they  shall  deem 
requisite  and  expedient,  and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same ; 

2.  To  hire  school-houses  and  rooms,  and  improve  them  as  they  may  deem 
proper ; 

3.  To  alter,  enlarge,  and  improve  and  repair  school-houses  and  appurtenances, 
as  they  may  deem  advisable ; 

4.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  furniture  and 
appendages,  and  to  defray  their  contingent  expenses ; 

5.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses,  out-houses, 
fences,  books,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  to  see  that  the  ordinances  of  the 
common  council  in  relation  thereto  be  observed ; 

6.  To  contract  with,  license  and  employ  all  teachers  in  said  schools,  and  at  their 
pleasure  to  remove  them ; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  moneys  appropriated  and  pro- 
vided by  law  for  the  support  of  schools  in  said  city,  so  far  as  the  same  shall  be 
sufficient,  and  the  residue  thereof  from  the  money  authorized  to  be  raised  for 
that  purpose,  by  section  one  hundred  and  sixty-seven  of  this  act,  by  tax  upon 
said  city ; 

8.  To  defray  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  the  board,  including  an 
annual  salary  to  the  superintendent ; 

9.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision  and  management 
of  the  common  schools  in  said  city,  and  from  time  to  time  to  adopt,  alter,  modify 
and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  rules  and  regulations  for  their  organi- 
zation, government,  visitation  anrl  instruction,  for  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their 
transfer  from  one  school  to  another,  and  generally  for  the  promotion  of  their  good 
order,  prosperity  and  public  utility  ; 

10.  Whenever  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  it  may  be  advisable  to  sell  any  of 
the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  any  of  the  school  property  now  or  hereafter 
belonging  to  the  city,  to  report  the  same  to  the  common  council ; 

11.  To  prepare  and  report  to  the  common  council  such  ordinances  and  regu- 
lations as  may  be  necessary  or  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and 
preservation  of  school-houses,  lots  and  sites,  and  appurtenances,  and  all  the 
property  belonging  to  the  city  connected  with  or  appertaining  to  the  schools, 
and  to  suggest  proper  penalties  for  the  violation  of  such  ordinances  and  regula- 
tions ;  and.  annually,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  September  on  each  year,  to 
determine  and  certify  to  said  common  council  the  sums  in  their  opinion  necessary 
or  proper  to  be  raised  under  the  one  hundred  and  sixty-seventh  section  of  this 
act,  specifying  the  sums  required  (for  the  year  commencing  on  the  first  day  of 
April  thereafter  )  for  each  of  the  purposes  therein  mentioned,  and  the  reasons 
therefor ; 

12.  Between  the  first  day  of  January  and  the  fifteenth  day  of  January,  in  each 
year,  to  make  and  transmit  to  the  county  clerk,  or  such  other  officer  as  may  be 
designated  by  law,  a  report  in  writing,  bearing  date  the  first  day  of  January  in 
the  year  of  its  transmission,  and  stating: 

i.  The  number  of  school-houses  in  said  city,  and  an  account  and  description 
of  all  the  common  schools  kept  in  said  city  during  the  preceding  year,  and  the 
time  they  have  severally  been  taught ; 

ii.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  said  schools  respectively,  and  the  number 
of  children  over  the  age  of  five  [  four  ]  years  and  under  the  age  of  sixteeen 
[  twenty-one  ]  years  residing  in  said  city  on  the  last  day  of  December  previous ; 


ROCHESTER.  441 

hi.  The  whole  amount  of  school  moneys  received  by  the  city  treasurer  of 
said  city  during  the  year  preceding,  distinguishing  the  amount  received  from  the 
county  treasurer  from  the  city  tax,  and  from  any  other  source; 

iv.  The  manner  in  which  such  moneys  had  been  expended,  and  whether  any, 
and  what  part  remains  unexpended,  and  for  what  cause ; 

v.  The  amount  of  money  received  for  tuition  fees  from  foreign  pupils 
during  the  year,  and  the  amount  paid  for  teachers'  wages,  in  addition  to  the 
public  moneys,  with  such  other  information  relating  to  the  common  schools  of 
said  city  as  may  from  time  to  time  be  required  by  the  State  Superintendent  of 
Common  Schools. 

§  170.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  allow  the  children  of 
persons  not  resident  within  the  city  to  attend  any  of  the  schools  of  said  city  under 
the  care  and  control  of  said  board,  upon  such  terms  as  said  board  shall  by  reso- 
lution prescribe,  fixing  the  tuition  which  shall  be  paid  therefor. 

§  171.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board  in  all  their  expenditures  and  contracts 
to  have  reference  to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  subject  to  their  order 
during  the  then  current  year  for  the  particular  expenditure  in  question,  and  not 
to  exceed  that  amount;  and  they  shall  apply  the  moneys  levied,  raised  and  received 
by  them  for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  said  city  in  such  a  manner  as  shall 
secure  equal  educational  advantages  to  all  the  children  of  said  city  over  five  and 
under  sixteen  [twenty-one]  years  of  age,  by  continuing  the  schools  in  each  district 
an  equal  period,  as  near  as  may  be. 

§  172.  The  said  board  of  commissioners  shall  be  trustees  of  the  school  library 
or  libraries  in  said  city,  and  all  the  provisions  of  the  law  which  now  are  or  here- 
after may  be  passed  relative  to  district  school  libraries  shall  apply  to  the  said 
commissioners.  They  shall  also  be  vested  with  the  same  discretion,  as  to  the  dis- 
position of  the  moneys  appropriated  by  any  laws  of  this  state  for  the  purchase  of 
libraries,  which  is  therein  conferred  upon  the  inhabitants  of  school  districts.  It 
shall  be  their  duty  to  provide  for  the  safe  keeping  of  the  libraries.  The  city 
superintendent  shall  be  the  general  librarian.  The  board  shall  also  appoint  a 
librarian  for  each  school,  to  have  the  care  of  the  books  and  to  superintend  the 
letting  out  and  return  thereof.  The  several  school  librarians  shall,  from  time  to 
time,  inform  the  general  librarian  of  the  state  and  condition  of  their  libraries;  and 
the  said  board,  or  the  general  librarian  under  the  direction  or  by  resolution  of 
the  said  board,  may  make  all  purchases  of  books  for  the  libraries,  and  provide 
for  their  equitable  distribution  among  the  schools,  and  exchange  or  cause  to  be 
repaired  the  damaged  books  belonging  thereto,  and  also  to  sell  any  books  which 
may  be  deemed  useless,  and  apply  the  proceeds  to  the  purchase  of  other  books 
for  said  libraries. 

§  173.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  board,  at  least  twenty  days  before  the 
annual  election  for  commissioners  in  each  year,  to  prepare  and  report  to  the  com- 
mon council  true  and  correct  statements  of  the  receipts  and  disbursements  of 
money  under  and  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  this  act,  during  the  preceding 
year,  in  which  account  shall  be  stated  under  appropriate  heads : 

1.  The  money  raised  by  the  common  council  under  the  one  hundred  and  sixty- 
seventh  section  of  this  act; 

2.  The  school  moneys  received  by  the  city  treasurer  of  the  city ; 

3.  The  moneys  received  by  the  common  council,  under  the  one  hundred  and 
sixty-seventh  section  of-this  act ; 

4.  All  other  moneys  received  by  the  city  treasurer,  subject  to  the  order  of  the 
board,  specifying  the  same  and  sources; 

5.  The  manner  in  which  such  sums  of  money  shall  have  been  expended,  specify- 
ing the  amount  paid  under  each  head  of  expenditure.  And  the  common  council 
shall,  ten  days  before  such  election,  cause  the  same  to  be  published  in  at  least 
two  of  the  newspapers  published  in  said  city. 

§  174.  The  common  council  of  the  said  city  shall  have  the  power  to  pass  such 
ordinances  and  regulations  as  the  said  board  of  education  may  report  as  necessary 
and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and  preservation  of  the  school- 
houses,  lots,  sites,  appurtenances  and  appendages,  libraries  and  all  necessary  pro- 

[Code.]  5G 


442  ROCHESTER. 

perty  belonging  to  or  connected  with  the  schools  in  said  city,  and  to  impose 
pro]>cr  penalties  for  the  violation  thereof,  subject  to  the  restrictions  and  limitations 
contained  in  this  act;  and  all  such  penalties  shall  be  collected  in  the  same  manner 
that  the  penalties  for  the  violation  of  the  city  ordinances  are  by  law  collected,  and 
when  collected  shall  be  paid  to  the  city  treasurer  of  the  city,  and  be  subject  to 
the  order  of  the  board  of  education  in  the  same  manner  as  other  moneys  raised 
pursuant  to  this  act. 

§  175.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  common  council,  within  fifteen  days  after 
receiving  the  certificate  of  the  commissioners  required  by  the  one  hundred  and 
sixty-ninth  section  of  this  act  of  the  sums  necessary  or  proper  to  be  raised  under 
the  one  hundred  and  sixty-seventh  section  of  this  act,  to  determine  and  certify  to 
said  board  of  education  the  amount  that  will  be  raised  by  them  for  the  year  com- 
mencing on  the  first  Monday  of  April  thereafter  for  the  purposes  mentioned  in 
said  one  hundred  and  sixty-seventh  section,  distinguishing  between  the  amount  to 
be  raised  for  teachers'  wages  and  contingent  expenses  and  the  amount  to  be  raised 
for  the  repair  of  school-houses ;  and  in  case  the  said  common  council  shall  neglect 
or  fail  to  certify  to  the  board  of  education  the  amount  that  will  be  raised  by  them 
within  thirty  days,  as  above  specified,  then  the  said  common  council  shall  raise 
the  several  amounts  embraced  in  the  certificate  of  the  board  of  education,  as 
specified  therein,  which  amounts  shall  be  subject  to  the  disposal  of  the  board  of 
education. 

§  176.  All  the  moneys  required  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act  or  received  by 
the  said  city  for  or  on  account  of  the  common  schools  shall  be  deposited  for  the 
safe  keeping  thereof  with  the  city  treasurer  of  said  city,  to  the  credit  of  said 
board  of  education,  and  shall  be  drawn  out,  in  pursuance  of  a  resolution  or  reso- 
lutions of  said  board,  by  drafts  drawn  by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the 
clerk  of  said  board,  payable  to  the  order  of  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to 
receive  such  moneys,  and  said  city  treasurer  shall  keep  the  funds  authorized  by 
this  title  to  be  received  by  him  separate  and  distinct  from  any  other  fund  which 
he  is  or  may  by  law  be  authorized  to  receive. 

§  177.  The  real  and  personal  estate  in  each  of  the  school  districts  numbers 
fourteen  and  sixteen,  as  at  present  existing,  shall  be  assessed  toward  defraying 
the  expense  of  building  a  school-house  in  each  of  said  districts,  respectively,  as 
follows :  Number  fourteen  a  sum  not  exceeding  two  thousand  dollars,  and  num- 
ber sixteen  a  sum  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars,  and  the  balance  which 
may  be  found  necessary  to  complete  the  school-houses  in  said  districts  fourteen 
and  sixteen,  respectively,  shall  be  paid  out  of  moneys  authorized  to  be  raised  by 
section  one  hundred  and  sixty-seven  of  this  act,  to  build  and  enlarge  school- 
houses. 

§  178.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  establish  and  cause  to 
be  kept  such  number  of  schools  in  said  city  for  the  instruction  of  colored  children 
as  they  shall  deem  expedient. 

§  179.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  possess  all  the  power  and  be  subject 
to  all  the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  trustees  of  common  schools  in  the  towns, 
in  respect  to  the  school  mentioned  in  the  last  preceding  section,  so  far  as  the  same 
are  applicable ;  and  shall  pay  the  compensation  of  the  teachers  of  the  said  schools, 
and  all  the  other  expenses  thereof,  out  of  the  moneys  raised  by  tax  under  this 
act  for  the  support  of  common  schools  ;  and,  until  such  schools  for  the  instruction 
of  colored  children  shall  be  so  provided,  it  shall  not  be  lawful  to  impose  any  tax 
upon  the  property  of  any  colored  person  in  said  city  for  the  support  of  common 
schools. 

§  180.  Whenever  the  said  board  of  education  shall  determine  to  establish  any 
school  for  the  instruction  of  colored  children,  they  shall  divide  the  said  city  into 
convenient  districts  for  the  accommodation  of  such  children,  and  enter  the  boun- 
daries thereof  on  their  records;  they  shall  make  an  estimate  of  the  expense  of 
erecting  a  suitable  school-house  in  each  of  said  districts,  and  determine  the  sites 
thereof  respectively,  and  report  all  their  doings  under  this  section  to  the  common 
council. 


SALEM.  443 

§181.  The  common  council  shall  have  power  to  raise  by  general  lax,  in  the 
manner  hereinbefore  provided,  and  on  a  separate  warrant,  such  sum  aa  shall  be 
necessary  to  build  a  school-house  in  each  of  the  said  districts,  <»i  in  at*  many  of 
them  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  not  exceeding  in  the  aggregate  the  Bum  of 
five  thousand  dollars,  or  the  said  common  council  may  refuse  to  raise  mi.  h  tax. 

§  182.  In  case  the  common  council  shall  refuse  to  raise  Buch  tax,  ti  <•  s  id  board 
of  education  shall  have  power  to  provide  and  lease  suitable  rooms  or  buildings 
for  the  accommodation  of  such  schools  or  either  of  them  ;  but  the  annual  expen- 
diture for  this  purpose  shall  not  exceed  the  sum  of  five  hundred  dollars. 


SALEM. 

[  Laws  of  1851,  chap.  206. 1 

§  88.  The  board  of  trustees  [of  the  village  of  Salem]  aforesaid  shall,  within 
twenty  days  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  appoint  six  commissioners  of  B< :hools. 
The  persons  so  appointed  shall,  within  five  days  after  their  appointment,  take 
the  oath  of  office  prescribed  by  the  constitution  of  this  state  for  state  officers, 
and  file  the  same  with  the  clerk. 

§  81).  The  board  of  trustees  shall  divide  the  said  commissioners  into  three 
classes,  to  be  denominated  first,  second  and  third,  and  shall  designate  t<>  which 
class  each  person  so  appointed  shall  belong.  The  term  of  office  of  the  first  class 
shall  expire  on  the  last  Monday  in  April  next  thereafter;  of  the  second,  in  one 
year;  and  the  third,  two  years  from  the  said  last  Monday  in  April. 

§  lJ0.  There  shall  be  elected  at  the  next  annual  election  thereafter  two  com- 
missioners of  schools,  and  each  year  thereafter  the  like  number,  to  supply  the 
places  of  tiiose  whose  term  is  about  to  expire;  and  the  term  of  office  shall  be 
three  years,  except  when  (elected  or)  appointed  to  fill  a  vacancy.  [As  amended 
by  chap.  81  o/1853.J 

§  91.  The  board  of  trustees  may  make  appointments  to  fill  vacancies  which 
may  occur  from  any  cause  other  than  the  expiration  of  the  term  of  office  of  those 
elected.  The  commissioners  so  appointed  shall  hold  their  offices  for  the  unex- 
pired term  of  those  to  supply  whose  places  they  are  appointed. 

§  92.  The  president  of  the  board  of  trustees,  together  with  the  said  commis- 
sioners, shall  constitute  a  board  to  be  styled  "  The  Board  of  Education  of  the 
village  of  Salem,"  and  shall  be  a  corporate  body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers 
and  duties  conferred  or  imposed  by  law.  In  the  absence  of  said  president,  such 
board  may  appoint  one  of  their  number  to  preside.  A  majority  of  such  board 
shall  be  a  quorum.  No  member  of  such  board  shall  receive  any  compensation 
for  his  services.     The  clerk  of  said  village  shall  be  clerk  of  said  board. 

§  93.  The  clerk  of  said  board  of  education  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  pro- 
ceedings theseof,  and  perform  such  other  duties  as  the  board  may  prescribe.; 
such  record,  or  a  transcript  thereof  certified  by  such  clerk  under  the  seal  of  the 
said  board,  shall  be  presumptive  evidence  of  the  facts  therein  i-et  forth ;  and 
such  record,  and  all  the  books,  accounts  and  proceedings  of  said  board,  shall  be 
subject  to  the  inspection  of  said  board  of  trustees,  and  of  any  committee  thereof. 
Such  clerk  shall  also  perform  all  the  duties,  and  shall  be  vested  with  all  the 
powers  conferred  or  imposed  by  law  on  clerks  of  school  districts  in  towns,  so  far 
as  such  laws  may  be  applicable  and  can  be  applied  to  such  village,  and  are  not 
inconsistent  with  this  act.  He  may  appoint  a  deputy,  who  shall  be  vested  With 
the  same  powers. 

§  94.  The  board  of  trustees  aforesaid  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  upon  the  taxable  property  and  persons 
in  such  village  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  for  county  purposes,  in  addition 
to  the  amount  now  or  hereafter  to  be  provided  by  law  for  common  schools  in  said 
village,  such  sums  as  may  be  determined  and  certified  by  said  board  of  education 
to  be  necessary  for  any  or  all  of  the  following  purposes : 


444  SALEM. 

1.  To  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites  for  school-houses  and  appurtenances; 

2.  To  build,  purchase,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances  ; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  maps 
and  charts,  furniture  and  appendages ;  provided,  however,  that  class  or  text 
books  shall  not  be  furnished  for  any  scholars  whose  parent  or  guardian  shall  be 
able  to  furnish  the  same ; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  schools  and  of  the 
school  library ; 

5.  To  pay  teachers'  wages ; 

6.  To  pay  charges  or  expenses  incurred  by  law  or  necessary  to  carry  this  act 
into  effect,  or  to  refund  loans  contracted  by  law  and  to  pay  the  interest  thereon, 
or  to  pay  such  sums  as  shall  be  required  to  fulfil  any  contract  duly  made  under 
the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  95.  The  board  of  trustees  shall  cause  the  amount  of  such  school  tax  to  be 
added,  in  a  separate  column,  to  the  assessment  roll  for  ordinary  taxes  in  said 
village ;  and  they  shall  cause  the  same  to  be  assessed,  levied  and  collected  at  the 
same  time  and  by  the  same  warrant,  and  in  the  same  manner  with  the  taxes  raised 
for  village  purposes  as  aforesaid. 

§  96.  All  moneys  raised  for  school  purposes  in  said  village,  and  all  belonging 
thereto  payable  from  other  sources,  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  said  village, 
who,  together  with  the  sureties  on  his  official  bond,  shall  be  accountable  therefor 
in  the  same  manner  as  for  other  moneys  of  the  said  village.  The  treasurer  shall 
also  be  liable  to  the  same  penalties,  for  any  official  misconduct  in  relation  to 
such  moneys,  as  for  any  similar  misconduct  in  relation  to  other  moneys'of  said 
village. 

§  97.  The  treasurer  shall  keop  a  separate  account  of  all  moneys  in  his  hands 
or  received  for  school  purposes,  to  be  called  the  "  school  fund."  No  payment 
shall  be  made  out  of  that  fund,  except  upon  orders  duly  drawn,  in  pursuance  of  a 
resolution  of  said  board  of  education,  and  certified  by  the  clerk  and  countersigned 
by  the  president  of  said  board.  The  treasurer  shall  in  his  annual  report  state 
fully  the  account  of  all  receipts  and  disbursements  from  that  fund  during  the  year, 
and  the  balance,  if  any,  in  his  hands.  His  aecount  as  to  the  school  fund  shall  be 
examined  by  the  board  of  education  annually,  who  shall  report  thereon  to  the 
trustees. 

§  98.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty: 

1.  To  establish  and  organize  such  and  so  many  schools  in  said  village,  including 
the  common  schools  therein,  as  they  shall  deem  requisite  and  expedient,  and  to 
alter  and  discontinue  or  change  and  consolidate  the  same ; 

2.  To  purchase  or  hire  school-houses  and  rooms  and  lots  or  sites  for  school- 
houses,  and  to  fence,  improve  and  repair  them  as  they  shall  judge  expedient; 

3.  Upon  such  sites  or  lots,  or  upon  any  lots  owned  by  said  village,  to  build, 
enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses,  out-houses  and  appurtenances, 
as  they  may  deem  advisable  ; 

4.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books  for 
indigent  pupils  and  for  the  school  library,  to  provide  fuel  and  lights,  furniture 
and  appendages  for  the  schools,  and  defray  their  contingent  expenses  and  the 
expenses  of  library ; 

5.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses  and  all  the  school 
property  aforesaid,  and  to  see  that  the  ordinances  of  the  board  of  trustees  in 
regard  thereto  be  observed,  and  to  report  to  them  any  violation  thereof; 

6.  To  contract  with,  examine,  license  and  employ  all  teachers  in  the  schools, 
either  high  or  common,  and  in  all  branches  or  departments  thereof,  and  at  their 
pleasure  to  remove  them  ; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  school  moneys  which  shall  be 
appropriated  and  provided  by  the  said  village,  so  far  as  the  same  shall  be  sufficient, 
and  the  residue  thereof  from  the  money  authorized  to  be  raised  by  this  act  by 
tax  as  aforesaid ; 


SALEM.  445 

8.  To  defray  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  tlie  board  of  education 
provided  that  the  account  of  such  expenses  shall  be  first  audited  and  allowed  by 
the  board  of  trustees  ; 

9.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision  and  management  of 
the  schools  aforesaid  ;  to  adopt,  alter,  modify  and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expe- 
dient, rules  and  regulations  for  their  organization,  government  and  instruction, 
for  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their  transfer  from  one  school  to  another,  and 
generally  for  their  good  order,  prosperity  and  public  utility ; 

10.  Whenever  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  of  education  it  may  be  advisable 
to  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  to  report  the  same  to  the  board  of 
trustees ; 

11.'  To  prepare  and  report  to  the  board  of  trustees  such  ordinances  and  regula- 
tions as  may  be  necessary  and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and 
preservation  of  property  held  for  school  purposes,  and  to  suggest  proper  penalties 
for  the  violation  thereof;  and  annually  to  determine  and  certify  to  said  board  the 
sums  in  their  opinion  necessary  to  be  raised  for  the  several  school  purposes 
specified  in  this  act; 

12.  To  provide  for  the  payment  to  any  adjoining  school  district,  or  any  person 
or  persons  entitled  thereto,  of  any  sum  on  account  of  such  person,  or  any  part  of 
said  district  being  or  having  been  included  or  connected  with  territory  not  now 
included  in  said  village; 

18.  Between  the  first  day  of  July  and  the  first  day  of  August,  in  each  year,  to 
make  and  file  with  the  county  clerk  and  with  the  clerk  of  said  village  a  report,  in 
writing,  bearing  date  the  first  day  of  July  in  each  year,  and  stating : 

i.  An  account  and  description  of  all  the  schools  kept  in  said  village  during  the 
preceding  year,  and  the  time  they  have  severally  been  taught ; 

ii.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  said  school,  respectively,  and  designating 
the  number  over  five  and  under  sixteen  years  of  age  residing  in  said  village  ou 
the  first  day  of  January  in  said  year  ; 

in.  The  whole  amount  of  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  said 
village  during  the  year  preceding,  designating  the  amount  received  from  the 
county  treasurer,  from  the  village  collector  and  from  other  sources,  specifying  the 
same ; 

iv.  The  manner  in  which  such  moneys  have  been  expended,  and  whether  any 
part  remained  unexpended,  with  the  amount  and  cause  thereof; 

v.  The  amount  of  moneys  received  for  tuition  fees  from  foreign  pupils  or  others 
during  the  year;  the  amount  paid  for  teachers'  wages  in  the  aggregate,  and  the 
amount  over  and  above  the  public  moneys;  together  with  such  other  facts  as  relate 
to  common  schools  as  is  required  by  law  to  be  reported  by  town  superintendents, 
or  as  said  board  of  trustees  shall  deem  necessary ; 

14.  To  establish,  organize  and  maintain  in  said  village,  whenever  in  their  opinion 
it  shall  be  necessary,  a  union  or  consolidated  school,  composed  of  primary  and 
secondary  schools,  and  a  high  school,  on  such  plan  and  under  such  discipline 
and  management  as  they  shall  deem  advisable ;  and  in  such  case  to  prescribe  the 
course  of  studies  therein,  and  so  arrange  and  regulate  the  system  of  instruction  in 
each  of  said  schools  that  the  transfer  of  pupils  shall  thereafter  be  from  the  pri- 
mary directly  into  the  secondary,  and  thence  into  the  high  school  or  otherwise, 
as  they  shall  deem  advisable.  And  for  the  purposes  aforesaid,  said  board  shall 
be  vested  with  all  the  powers  and  charged  with  all  the  duties  and  liabilities  above 
specified  in  regard  to  schools  generally. 

And  said  board  may  organize  and  maintain  primary,  secondary  or  high  schools 
or  either  of  them  in,  or  cause  the  same  to  be  taught  in  connection  with,  the 
Washington  academy,  on  such  terms  and  conditions,  and  for  such  time,  not 
exceeding  ten  years,  as  shall  be  deemed  expedient  by  and  between  said  board  of 
education  and  the  trustees  of  such  academy;  such  arrangement  shall,  if  made,  be 
by  contract  duly  executed  by  said  parties,  but  no  such  contract  shall  be  made 
without  the  assent  of  the  board  of  trustees  of  said  village ;  and  in  such  case  said 
board  of  education  are  vested  with  power  to  make  such  rules  and  regulations  as 
they  shall  see  fit  as  to  age  or  degree  of  scholarship  required  to  enter  said  several 


440  SALEM. 

departments,  the  compensation  and  payment  therefor  and  other  terms  thereof,  and 
the  time  of  continuance  therein. 

§  99.  Such  board  of  education  shall  have  a  standing  committee,  consisting  of 
not  less  than  three  members,  whose  duty  it  shall  be  to  visit  said  schools  and  each 
department  thereof  as  often  as  twice  every  term,  and  to  make  report  in  writing 
to  said  board  in  regard  thereto. 

§  100.  The  said  board  of  education  may  permit  children  of  persons  not  resident 
within  said  village  to  attend  said  schools  on  such  terms  as  they  shall  prescribe; 
and  said  board  may,  in  the  name  of  said  village,  sue  for  or  recover  of  the  father 
or  mother,  master  or  mistress,  or  other  person  under  whose  charge  such  child  or 
children  may  be,  all  such  sums  as  shall  be  so  prescribed,  with  costs  of  suit. 

§  101.  The  board  of  education  shall  be  trustees  of  the  district  library  or  libra- 
ries in  said  village.  All  the  provisions  of  law  which  now  are  or  hereafter  may  be 
passed,  relating  to  school  district  libraries,  shall  apply  to  the  said  commissioners 
and  board  of  education,  so  far  as  the  same  are  applicable  and  can  be  applied, 
and  are  not  inconsistent  with  this  act,  in  the  same  manner  as  if  they  were  trustees 
of  a  school  district  composed  of  the  said  village.  They  shall  be  vested  with  the 
discretion  as  to  the  disposition  of  library  moneys  which  is  by  law  conferred  upon 
the  inhabitants  of  school  districts,  and  they  may  consolidate  the  said  libraries,  or 
dispose  of  parts  thereof,  as  deemed  best.  It  shall  be  their  duty  to  provide  a 
library  room  or  rooms,  and  the  necessary  furniture  therefor,  appoint  a  librarian, 
make  all  purchases  of  books,  exchange  or  cause  to  be  repaired  all  damaged 
books,  and  sell  those  deemed  useless  or  of  an  improper  character,  and  apply  the 
proceeds  to  the  purchase  of  others. 

§  102.  No  trustee  of  said  village  or  member  of  said  board  of  education  shall 
be  a  contractor  or  be  interested  in  any  contract  for  building  or  making  any 
erections  or  repairs  authorized  by  this  act,  or  furnishing  materials  therefor.  All 
contracts  made  in  violation  hereof  shall  be  void,  so  far  as  any  benefit  may  be 
realized  therefrom  by  the  offender,  and  such  person  shall  forfeit  to  said  village 
fifty  dollars,  to  be  recovered  by  them  before  any  court  having  cognizance  of  the 
same,  with  costs. 

§  103.  The  board  of  trustees  of  said  village  may  pass  such  ordinances  and 
regulations  as  they  may  deem  necessary,  or  as  shall  be  reported  by  said  board 
of  education,  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and  maintenance  of  the  school- 
house  or  other  property  connected  with  the  schools,  or  property  held  or  occupied 
or  used  for  school  purposes,  and  to  impose  penalties  for  the  violation  thereof, 
subject  to  the  restrictions  contained  in  this  act ;  and  all  such  penalties  shall  be 
collected  in  the  same  manner  as  other  penalties  imposed  by  said  board,  and  when 
collected  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer,  to  the  credit  of  the  school  fund,  and  be 
subject  to  the  order  of  the  board  of  education. 

§  104.  Whenever  the  said  board  of  education  shall  report  to  the  trustees  that 
it  is  advisable  to  sell  any  of  the  school  property  as  aforesaid,  the  said  trustees 
shall  sell  the  same  as  soon  as  may  be,  and  upon  such  terms  as  said  trustees  shall 
deem  best.  The  proceeds  of  all  such  sales  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer,  to  the 
credit  of  the  school  fund. 

§  105.  The  title  of  the  school-house  and  other  school  property  aforesaid  shall 
be  vested  in  the  trustees  of  the  village  of  Salem;  and  the  same,  while  used  or 
kept  for  use  for  school  purposes,  shall  not  be  levied  on  or  sold  by  virtue  of  any 
process,  or  be  subject  to  taxation  for  any  purpose ;  nor  shall  the  same  be  incum- 
bered or  in  any  way  disposed  of,  except  as  authorized  by  this  act.  The  said 
village,  in  its  corporate  capacity,  may  take,  hold  or  dispose  of  any  real  or  per- 
sonal estate  transferred  to  it  by  gift,  grant  or  devise,  for  the  use  or  benefit  of 
said  schools,  or  any  of  them,  and  whether  the  same  shall  be  transferred,  given, 
granted  or  devised  in  terms  to  said  village  by  its  proper  style,  or  by  any  other 
designation,  or  to  any  other  designation,  or  to  any  person  or  persons,  or  body 
or  otherwise,  for  the  use  or  benefit  of  said  schools  or  either  of  them. 

§  106.  The  town  superintendent  of  common  schools  of  the  town  of  Salem,  in 
making  the  apportionment  of  school  or  library  moneys  among  the  several 
districts  in  said  town,  shall  allot  to  said  village  such  sum  as  shall  be  its  propor- 


SALEM.  447 

tion  of  such  moneys,  considering  such  village  as  a  regular  school  district  of  said 
town,  and  the  report  of  the  board  of  education  as  the  report  of  its  trustees. 
Such  superintendent  shall  allot  to  said  village,  in  the  apportionment  to  be  made 
on  the  first  Tuesday  of  April,  1851,  such  sum  as  school  districts  nuiiilicr  eleven 
and  twelve  in  said  town  would  be  entitled  to  had  said  village  not  been  consoli- 
dated into  one  district.  All  sums  allotted  as  aforesaid  shall  be  paid  by  said 
superintendent  to  the  treasurer  of  said  village,  to  the  credit  of  the  school  fund 
aforesaid,  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner  as  to  trustees  of  school 
districts  in  said  town. 

§  107.  Said  board  of  education  shall,  between  the  first  and  fifteenth  of  January 
in  each  year,  make  and  transmit  a  report  in  writing  to  the  town  superintendent  of 
common  schools  of  the  town  of  Salem,  bearing  date  on  the  first  day  of  January 
in  such  year,  and  containing  a  statement  of  the  name  and  age  ol  each  child 
residing  in  the  said  village,  on  the  last  day  of  December  previous  to  the  date  of 
said  report,  over  the  age  of  five  and  under  that  of  sixteen  years  of  age,  except 
Indian  children  otherwise  provided  for  by  law,  and  the  names  of  the  parents  or 
other  persons  with  whom  such  children  shall  respectively  reside,  and  the  number 
of  children  residing  with  each.  Such  report  shall  be  the  only  report  required  to 
be  made  in  order  to  entitle  such  allotment,  as  required  in  the  last  section.  Said 
schools  in  said  village,  and  said  board  of  education,  shall  not  in  any  other  respect 
be  bound  to  report  to  said  superintendent ;  nor  shall  such  schools  or  the  teachers 
thereof  be  in  any  wise  under  his  control  or  supervision. 

§  108.  In  case  said  board  of  education  shall  contract  with  the  trustees  of  the 
Washington  academy,  as  authorized  in  this  act,  they  are  further  empowered  to 
lease  from  said  trustees  the  academy  building  and  grounds  adjacent,  or  contract 
for  the  joint  or  several  occupation  of  the  same,  or  so  much  thereof  or  such  privi- 
leges therein  or  appertaining  thereto,  on  such  conditions,  and  for  such  time,  not 
exceeding  two  years,  as  they  shall  deem  advisable.  And  they  may  pay  in  advance 
to  such  trustees  such  gross  sum  for  the  rent  thereof,  for  such  term  as,  being 
calculated  with  a  proper  rebate  for  the  advance  payment,  shall  be  deemed  by  said 
board  no  more  than  a  fair  equivalent  for  the  nse  and  occupation  thereof  for  the 
purposes  required  under  this  act.  And  such  sum  as  shall  be  necessary  for 
the  purposes  aforesaid,  not  exceeding  one  thousand  dollars,  may  be  loaned  by  the 
comptroller  to  said  village  out  of  any  moneys  belonging  to  the  common  school 
fund,  on  receiving  from  the  board  of  trustees  of  said  village  the  bond  of  said 
village  therefor,  payable  in  five  equal  payments  with  annual  interest.  The  moneys 
received  thereon  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer,  to  the  credit  of  the  school  fund, 
and  shall  be  drawn  out  in  the  same  manner  as  other  moneys  in  that  fund  ;  pro- 
vided, however,  that  no  such  contract  shall  be  made,  nor  any  loan  obtained  by  said 
board  of  education,  without  the  previous  assent  of  the  board  of  trustees  of  said 
village.  In  case  said  loan  shall  be  made,  said  trustees  shall  annually  raise  during 
each  of  said  five  years  by  tax,  in  the  same  manner  and  at  the  same  time  as  other 
village  taxes  are  raised,  such  sum  as,  over  and  above  the  expenses  of  collection 
will  pay  the  several  instalments  so  to  grow  due  on  such  loan,  with  the  interest. 

§  109.  Any  contract,  lease  or  agreement  made  or  executed  by  said  board  of 
education  with  the  trustees  of  the  Washington  academy,  under  the  provisions  of 
this  act,  may  be  vacated,  modified  or  renewed  by  the  parties  aforesaid,  by  and 
with  the  assent  of  the  board  of  trustees  of  said  village ;  provided  no  renewal 
thereof  shall  be  made  for  a  term  exceeding  ten  years  at  any  one  time. 

§110.  All  the  property,  real  and  personal,  belonging  to  the  districts  number 
eleven  and  twelve  shall  be  and  is  hereby  transferred  to  and  vested  in  the  trustees 
of  the  village  of  Salem  for  school  purposes  ;  and  they  are  authorized  to  take  the 
same  into  their  possession,  and  hold,  use  and  occupy  the  same,  and  exercise  the 
same  rowers  in  regard  thereto,  as  if  they  had  purchased  the  same  for  school  pur- 
poses under  this  act ;  and  the  present  trustees  and  officers  of  said  districts  are 
hereby  required  to  deliver  possession  thereof,  and  of  all  books,  papers  and 
vouchers  connected  therewith,  to  said  board,  and  said  board  may  sue  for  and 
recover  the  same  with  costs  of  suit  of  any  person  having  the  same  or  any  part 
thereof. 


448  SCHENECTADY. 

§  111.  All  debts  and  legal  liabilities  of  said  school  districts  number  eleven  and 
twelve  shall  be  audited,  paid,  satisfied  and  discharged  by  said  board  of  education 
out  of  the  school  fund. 

§  112.  Each  and  every  of  the  schools  established  or  maintained  under  this  act 
shall  be  free  to  the  children  of  all  residents  of  said  village;  provided,  however, 
that  said  board  of  education  may  cause  the  tuition  fee  to  be  charged  and  col- 
lected of  the  father  or  mother,  master  or  mistress,  or  other  person  ( in  whose 
charge  such  pupil  maybe),  residing  in  said  village,  of  any  pupil  over  sixteen 
years  of  age,  or  who  shall  pursue  studies  which  said  board  shall  deem  should  not 
be  tuition  free.  For  the  purpose  of  collecting  such  fees,  such  board  shall  by 
general  rules  provide  for  the  keeping  of  proper  registers,  in  which  shall  be 
entered  the  name  of  every  such  pupil,  and  his  father  or  mother,  master  or 
mistress,  or  other  person  in  whose  charge  such  pupil  may  be,  the  length  of  time 
such  pupil  shall  attend  such  school,  and  the  tuition  fee  chargeable  therefor. 
Immediately  previous  to  the  issuing  of  the  warrant  for  the  collection  of  the 
annual  village  tax,  said  board  of  education  shall  cause  to  be  presented  to  the 
board  of  trustees  an  abstract  from  such  registers,  containing  a  statement  of 
names  of  every  such  father  or  mother,  master  or  mistress,  or  other  person 
residing  in  such  village,  from  whom  any  sum  or  amount  was  due  for  such  tuition 
fees  at  the  close  of  the  term  previous  to  the  presentation  of  such  lists.  The 
annual  tax  list  shall  contain  a  column  headed  •'  tuition  fees,"  in  which  shall  be 
entered,  opposite  the  name  of  such  person,  the  amount  so  returned  as  aforesaid, 
which  sum  shall  be  included  in  the  aggregate  column  to  be  collected  under  such 
warrant;  and  the  same  proceedings  shall  be  had  for  the  collection  thereof  as  for 
other  village  taxes;  and  when  collected  the  same  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer, 
to  the  credit  of  the  school  fund  ;  but  such  return  so  made  shall  not  include 
the  name  of  any  person  who  shall,  in  the  opinion  of  the  board,  be  in  indi- 
gent circumstances ;  any  person  specified  in  such  return  may,  at  any  time 
before  the  collection  of  said  tuition  fee,  apply  to  said  board  of  education  for  a 
remission  of  the  same ;  and  if  said  board  shall  deem  proper,  they  may  by  reso- 
lution, duly  passed,  remit  the  same  in  whole  or  in  part,  and  the  clerk  shall  certify 
such  remission  to  the  collector,  and  no  further  proceedings  shall  be  had  for  the 
collection  of  the  sum  so  remitted. 

§  113.  Nothing  in  this  act  contained  shall  prevent  the  trustees  of  tlr?  Wash- 
ington academy  from  receiving  from  the  regents  of  the  university  any  sum  or 
allowance  for  pupils  pursuing  classical  studies  therein,  or  for  organizing  and 
maintaining  a  teachers'  department  therein.  And  any  pupil  in  any  of  the  depart- 
ments organized  in  said  academy  under  the  provisions  of  this  act  pursuing  such 
classical  studies  as  are  required  by  the  regents  aforesaid,  in  order  to  be  entitled 
to  an  allowance,  and  being  of  sufficient  age,  shall  be  included  in  the  returns  of 
said  trustees  to  said  regents,  and  they  shall  be  entitled  to  the  same  allowance  for 
such  pupil  or  pupils  as  for  other  classical  pupils  heretofore. 


SCHENECTADY. 
[Laws  o/1854,  chap.  178.] 

Section  1.  Alonzo  C.  Paige  and  Nicholas  Van  Vranken,  of  the  first  ward  of 
the  city  of  Schenectady,  David  M.  Moore  and  William  N.  Duane,  of  the  second 
ward,  Charles  Chequer  and  Hiram  Champion,  of  the  third  ward,  and  Demetrius 
M.  Chadsey  and  Isaac  G.  Duryea,  of  the  fourth  ward,  are  hereby  appointed  com- 
missioners of  common  schools  of  said  city.  Such  commissioners,  within  ten 
days  after  receiving  notice  of  the  passage  of  this  act,  shall  take  the  oath  of  office 
prescribed  by  the  constitution  of  this  state,  and  file  the  same  with  the  city  clerk. 

§  2.  Within  ten  days  after  taking  the  oath  of  office,  said  commissioners  shall 
meet  in  the  common  council  rooms  of  said  city,  and  shall  determine  by  lot  which 
of  the  two  commissioners  in  each  ward  shall  serve  for  the  term  ending  on  the 


SCHENECTADY.  449 

second  Tuesday  of  May,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-five,  and  which  for  the  term 

ending  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  eighteen  hundred  and  fifty-six;  but  they 
may  hold  their  offices  until  others  are  elected  in  their  places  and  have  taken  the 
oath  of  office. 

§  3.  In  each  year  thereafter  there  shall  he  elected  in  said  city,  at  a  special 
election  to  be  held  on  the  first  Tuesday  of  May,  in  each  year,  in  the  same  manner 
and  under  the  same  regulations  as  other  ward  officers  are  elected,  one  commis- 
sioner of  common  schools  for  each  ward,  to  supply  the  places  of  those  whose 
terms  are  about  to  expire ;  they  shall  hold  their  offices  for  two  years,  and  until 
others  are  elected  and  have  taken  the  oath  of  office.  The  term  of  the  office  of 
all  the  commissioners,  elected  pursuant  to  this  act,  shall  commence  on  the  Tues- 
day next  after  the  election. 

§  4.  The  common  council  of  said  city  may  make  appointments  of  commis- 
sioners of  common  schools,  to  till  vacancies  which  may  occur  from  any  other 
cause  than  the  expiration  of  the  term  of  office  of  those  elected.  The  commis- 
sioners so  appointed  shall  hold  their  office  until  the  Tuesday  next  succeeding  the 
next  annual  election ;  and  at  each  annual  election  there  shall  be  chosen  a  com- 
missioner to  supply  the  place  of  any  person  so  appointed;  and  the  person  thus 
elected  shall  serve  out  the  unexpired  term. 

§  5.  Any  commissioner  of  common  schools  in  said  city  may  be  removed  from 
office  for  official  misconduct,  by  the  common  council  of  said  city,  by  a  vote  of 
two-thirds  of  the  members  thereof;  but  a  written  copy  of  the  charges  preferred 
against  said  commissioner  shall  be  served  upon  him,  and  he  shall  be  allowed  an 
opportunity  of  refuting  any  such  charges  of  misconduct,  before  removal. 

§  6.  The  commissioners  of  common  schools  in  said  city  shall  constitute  aboard, 
to  be  styled  "  The  Board  of  Education  of  the  city  of  Schenectady,"  which  shall 
be  a  corporate  body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  upon  them 
by  virtue  of  this  act.  A  majority  of  the  board  shall  constitute  a  quorum.  The 
first  meeting  of  said  board  shall  be  held  on  the  second  Wednesday  of  May,  eighteen 
hundred  and  fifty-four;  and  the  annual  meetings  of  said  board,  in  each  year 
thereafter,  shall  be  held  on  the  second  Wednesday  of  May  in  each  year.  At  the 
first  meeting  of  the  board,  and  annually  thereafter  at  the  annual  meeting,  they 
shall  elect  one  of  their  number  president  of  the  board,  and  whenever  he  shall  be 
absent,  a  president  pro  tempore  may  be  appointed.  The  said  commissioners  shall 
receive  no  compensation  for  their  services,  nor  shall  they  be  interested,  directly 
or  indirectly,  in  any  contract  for  building  or  for  making  any  improvement  or 
repairs  provided  for  by  this  act. 

§  7.  The  said  commissioners  shall  meet  for  the  transaction  of  business  as  often 
as  once  in  each  month,  and  may  adjourn  for  any  shorter  time.  Special  meetings 
may  be  called  by  the  president,  or,  in  his  absence  or  inability  to  act,  by  any  mem- 
ber of  the  board,  as  often  as  necessary,  by  giving  personal  notice  to  each  member 
of  the  board,  or  by  causing  a  written  or  printed  notice  to  be  left  at  his  last  place 
of  residence,  at  least  twenty-four  hours  before  the  hour  for  such  special  meeting- 

§  8.  The  said  commissioners  shall  appoint  a  secretary  and  librarian,  who  shall 
hold  his  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board,  and  whose  compensation  shall  be 
fixed  by  the  board.  The  said  secretary  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of 
the  board,  have  charge  of  the  library,  and  perform  such  other  duties  as  the  board 
may  prescribe.  The  said  record,  or  transcript  thereof  certified  by  the  secretary, 
shall  be  received  in  all  courts  as  prima  facie  evidence  of  the  facts  therein  set 
forth  ;  and  such  record,  and  all  the  books,  accounts,  vouchers  and  papers  of  said 
board  shall  at  all  times  be  subject  to  the  inspection  of  the  common  council  or 
any  committee -thereof. 

§  9.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their 
duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time,  by  tax,  to  be  levied  upon  all  the  real  and  personal 
estate  in  said  city  which  shall  be  "liable  to  taxation  for  the  ordinary  city  taxes  or 
for  city  and  county  charges,  in  like  manner  as  city  charges  or  taxes  are  raised, 
such  sums  as  may  be  determined  and  certified  by  said  board  of  education  to  be 
necessary  and  proper  for  any  and  all  of  the  following  purposes  : 

[Code.  |  57 


450  SCHENECTADY. 

1.  To  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites  for  school-houses,  or  sites  with  buildings 
thereon  for  the  same  purpose ; 

2.  To  build,  purchase,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses, 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances ; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages;  but  the  power  herein  granted  shall  not  be  deemed  to 
authorize  the  furnishing  with  class  or  text  books  any  scholar  whose  parents  or 
guardian  shall  be  able  to  furnish  the  same; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  common  schools, 
including  the  academical  department  therein  and  the  expenses  of  the  school 
library  of  said  city,  and  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  said  board,  includ- 
ing the  salary  of  the  secretary  of  the  board,  and  the  compensation  allowed  to  the 
assistant  librarians ; 

5.  To  pay  teachers'  wages,  after  the  application  of  public  moneys  which  may 
by  law  be  appropriated  and  provided  for  that  purpose; 

6.  The  amount  raised  for  teachers'  wages  and  contingent  expenses  shall  not  be 
less  than  twice,  nor  more  than  six  times  the  amount  appropriated  to  said  city 
from  the  common  school  fund  of  the  state  during  the  previous  year;  nor  shall 
the  e  be  raised  in  any  one  year,  for  buying  sites,  or  sites  with  buildings  thereon, 
erecting  and  repairing  school-houses  and  the  appurtenances,  a  sum  exceeding  two 
thousand  dollars,  except  as  herein  otherwise  provided  for.  And  the  common 
council  are  authorized  and  directed,  when  necessary,  to  borrow,  in  anticipation, 
the  amount  of  taxes  so  to  be  raised  collected  and  levied  as  aforesaid,  and  to  give 
the  bonds  of  the  city,  signed  by  the  mayor,  and  under  the  seal  of  the  city,  as 
security  for  the  repayment  of  the  moneys  so  borrowed. 

§  10.  All  moneys  to  be  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  all 
school  moneys  by  law  appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  city,  whether  from  the 
school  or  literature  funds,  or  under  the  act  to  establish  free  schools  throughout 
the  state,  or  otherwise,  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  said  city,  who,  together 
with  the  sureties  on  his  official  bond,  shall  be  accountable  therefor  in  the  same 
manner  as  for  other  moneys  of  said  city.  The  said  treasurer  shall  be  liable  to 
the  same  penalties  for  official  misconduct  in  relation  to  the  said  money  as  for  any 
similar  misconduct  in  relation  to  other  moneys  of  said  city. 

§  11.  All  moneys  required  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act,  or  received  by 
said  city  for  the  use  of  the  common  schools  therein  or  of  the  academical  depart- 
ment hereinafter  mentioned,  shall  be  deposited  for  the  safe  keeping  thereof  with 
the  treasurer  of  said  city,  to  the  credit  of  said  board  of  education,  until  drawn 
from  said  treasurer  as  hereinafter  provided  for  ;  and  the  said  treasurer  shall  keep 
the  fund  authorized  by  this  act  to  be  received  by  him  separate  and  distinct  from 
any  other  funds  which  he  is  or  may  by  law  be  authorized  to  teceive. 

>J  12.  The  treasurer  shall  pay  out  the  moneys  authorized  by  this  act  to  be 
received  by  him  upon  drafts  drawn  by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the 
secretary  of  said  board  of  education,  which  drafts  shall  not  be  drawn  except  in 
pursuance  of  a  resolution  or  resolutions  of  said  board,  and  shall  be  made  payable 
to  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to  receive  said  money. 

§  13.  The  said  board  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty  : 

1.  To  organize  and  establish  such  and  so  many  schools  in  said  city  as  they  shall 
deem  requisite  and  expedient,  and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same; 

2.  To  purchase  and  hire  school-houses  and  rooms,  lots  or  sites  for  school- 
houses,  or  sites  with  buildings  thereon  to  be  used  as  school-houses,  and  to  fence 
and  improve  such  sites,  as  they  may  deem  proper ; 

3.  Upon  such  lots  and  upon  such  sites,  owned  by  said  city,  to  build,  enlarge, 
alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses,  out-houses  and  appurtenances,  as  they  may 
deem  advisable ; 

4.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses,  out-houses,  books, 
furniture  and  appurtenances,  and  to  see  that  the  ordinances  of  the  common 
council  in  relation  thereto  be  observed  ; 

5.  To  contract  with,  license  and  employ  all  teachers  in  said  schools  and  the 
academical  department  therein,  and  at  their  pleasure  to  remove  them; 


SCHENECTADY.  4oi 

6.  To  pay  the  wages  of  the  teachers  in  said  schools  out  of  the  moneys  appro- 
priated and  provided  hy  law  for  the  support  of  common  schools  in  s;iid  city,  and 
the  wages  of  the  teachers  of  the  academical  department  out  of  the  monejra 
appropriated  to  sajfl  department  from  the  income  of  the  literature  and  United 
States  deposit  funds,  so  far  as  the  same  shall  he  sufficient,  and  the  residue  <  I 
wages  of  the  teachers  in  said  schools  and  academical  department  from  tin-  money 
authorized  to  he  raised  for  that  purpose,  by  section  nine  of  this  act,  by  tax  upon 
said  city  ; 

7.  To  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  said  common  schools  and  academi- 
cal department,  and  the  expenses  of  the  school  library  of  said  city,  and  the 
necessary  and  contingent  expenses  of  the  board,  including  the  annua]  salary  of 
the  secretary  of  the  board  and  the  compensation  allowed  to  the  assistant  librarians, 
provided  the  account  of  the  expenses  shall  first  be  audited  and  allowed  by  the 
common  council; 

8.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision  and  management  of 
the  common  schools  of  said  city,  and  from  time  to  time  to  adopt,  alter,  modify 
and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  rules  and  regulations  for  their  organiza- 
tion, government  and  instruction,  or  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their  transfer 
from  one  school  to  another,  and  generally  for  their  good  order,  prosperity  and 
utility ;  and  to  have  power  to  establish  in  said  schools  an  academical  department, 
to  receive  into  said  schools  or  academical  department  pupils  lesiding  out  of  Baid 
city,  and  to  regulate  and  establish  the  tuition  fees  of  such  non-resident  pupils  in 
the  several  departments  of  said  schools  and  in  such  academical  department,  aid 
to  collect  such  fees  in  the  name  of  the  said  city;  to  regulate  the  transfer  of 
scholars  from  the  primary  to  the  academical  departments,  to  direct  what  text 
books  shall  be  used  in  said  schools  and  academical  department,  to  provide  and 
keep  in  repair  school  apparatus,  books  for  indigent  pupils,  furniture  and  appen- 
dages, fuel  and  other  necessaries  for  the  schools  and  academical  department ;  and 
to  appoint  assistant  librarians,  as  they  may  from  time  to  time  deem  necessary, 
and  to  regulate  their  compensation  ; 

9.  Whenever  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  of  education  it  may  be  advisable  to 
fell  any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  any  of  the  school  property  now  or 
hereafter  belonging  to  the  city,  to  report  the  same  to  the  common  council ; 

10.  To  prepare  and  report  to  the  common  council  such  ordinances  and  regula- 
tions as  may  be  necessary  and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and 
preservation  of  school-houses,  lots  and  sites  and  appurtenances,  and  all  tl  e 
property  belonging  to  the  city  connected  with  or  appertaining  to  the  schools,  and 
to  suggest  proper  penalties  for  the  violation  of  such  ordinances  and  regulations ; 
and  annually,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  June  in  each  year,  to  determine  and 
certify  to  the  said  common  council  the  sums  in  their  opinion  necessary  or  proj  er 
to  be  "raised  under  the  ninth  section  of  this  act  for  the  year  commencing  on  the 
first  day  of  July  thereafter,  specifying  the  amount  required  for  each  of  the  pur- 
poses therein  mentioned,  and  the  reason  therefor  ; 

11.  Between  the  first  day  of  July  and  the  first  day  of  August,  in  each  year,  to 
make  and  transmit  to  the  county  clerk,  or  such  other  officer  as  may  be  designated 
by  law,  a  report  in  writing,  bearing  date  the  first  day  of  July,  in  the  year  of  its 
transmission,  and  stating: 

i.  The  number  of  school-houses  in  said  city,  and  an  account  and  description  of 
all  common  schools  kept  in  said  city  during  the  preceding  year,  and  the  time  they 
have  severally  been  taught ; 

ii.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  said  schools,  respectively,  and  the  number 
of  children  over  the  age  of  four  years  and  under  the  age  of  twenty-one  years 
residing  in  said  city  on  the  first  day  of  January  in  each  year ; 

in.  The  whole  amount  of  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  said  city 
during  the  preceding  year,  distinguishing  the  amount  received  from  the  city 
treasu-er  from  the  city  "tax  and  from  any  other  sources ; 

iv.  The  manner  in  which  such  moneys  have  been  expended,  and  whether  any, 
and  what  part,  remains  unexpended,  and  for  what  cause. 


452  SCHENECTADY. 

v.  The  amount  of  moneys  received  for  tuition  fees  from  foreign  pupils  during 
the  year,  and  the  amount  paid  for  teachers'  wages  in  addition  to  the  public  moneys, 
with  such  other  information  relating  to  the  common  schools  of  said  city  as 
may  from  time  to  time  be  required  by  the  State  Superintendent  of  Common 
Schools. 

§  14.  Each  school  commissioner  shall  visit  all  the  schools  in  said  city,  at  least 
twice  in  each  year  of  his  official  term  ;  and  said  board  of  education  shall  provide 
that  each  of  said  schools  shall  be  visited  by  a  committee  of  three  or  more  of  their 
number  at  least  once  in  each  term. 

$  15.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  in  all  their  expenditures  and  contracts, 
to  have  reference  to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  subject  to  their  order 
during  the  then  current  year  for  the  particular  expenditures  in  question,  and  not 
to  exceed  that  amount. 

§  16.  The  said  board  of  commissioners  shall  be  trustees  of  the  school  libraries 
in  said  city;  and  all  the  provisions  of  law  which  now  are  or  hereafter  may  be 
passed,  relative  to  school  district  libraries,  shall  apply  to  said  commissioners  in 
the  same  manner  as  if  they  were  trustees  of  a  school  district  comprehending  said 
city  ;  they  shall  also  be  vested  with  the  same  discretion,  as  to  the  disposition  of 
the  moneys  appropriated  by  the  laws  of  this  state  for  the  purchase  of  libraries, 
which  is  therein  conferred  on  the  inhabitants  of  school  districts.  It  shall  be  their 
duty  to  provide  room  or  rooms  for  such  libraries,  and  the  necessary  furniture 
therefor.  The  librarian  shall  report  to  the  board  the  condition  of  the  library  or 
the  libraries  under  his  charge ;  and  the  said  board,  or  secretary  thereof  under  the 
direction  and  by  the  resolution  of  said  board,  may  make  all  purchases  of  books 
for  said  library  or  libraries,  and  may  direct  the  mode  of  their  distribution,  and 
may  cause  to  be  repaired  damaged  books  belonging  thereto,  and  may  sell  any 
book  in  said  library  or  libraries  that  may  be  deemed  useless,  and  apply  the  pro- 
ceeds to  the  purchase  of  other  books  for  said  library  or  libraries. 

is  17.  The  title  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  books,  apparatus  and 
appurtenances,  and  other  school  property  in  this  act  mentioned,  shall  be  vested 
in  the  city  of  Schenectady,  and  the  same,  while  used  or  appropriated  for  school 
purposes,  shall  not  be  levied  upon  or  sold  by  virtue  of  any  warrant  or  execution, 
nor  be  subject  to  taxation  for  any  purpose  whatever ;  and  the  said  city  in  its  cor- 
porate capacity  shall  be  able  to  take  and  hold  any  personal  or  real  estate  trans- 
ferred to  it  by  grants,  gifts,  devise  or  bequest,  in  trust  for  the  benefit  of  the  com- 
mon schools  of  said  city  or  of  the  academical  department  therein,  whether  the  same 
be  transferred  in  terms  to  said  city  by  its  corporate  name,  or  by  any  other  desig- 
nation, or  to  any  person  or  persons  or  bodies  for  the  benefit  of  said  schools  or 
academical  department.  *•'"*'•» 

§  18.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall,  upon  the  recommendation  of  said 
board  of  education,  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots  or  any  of  the  school 
property  now  or  hereafter  belonging  to  said  city,  upon  such  terms  as  the  common 
council  "shall  deem  reasonable  ;  the  proceeds  of  all  such  sales  shall  be  paid  to  the 
treasurer  of  said  citv,  and  shall  be,  by  said  board,  expended  in  the  purchase, 
repairs  or  other  improvement  of  school-houses,  lots  or  school  furniture,  apparatus 
or  appurtenances. 

§  19.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  at  least  fifteen  days  before  the  annual 
election  for  commissioners*  in  each  year,  to  prepare  and  report  to  the  common 
council  true  and  correct  statements  of  the  receipts  and  disbursements  of  moneys, 
under  and  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  this  act,  during  the  preceding  year, 
in  which  account  shall  be  stated,  under  appropriate  heads: 

1.  The  moneys  raised  by  the  common  council  under  the  ninth  section  of  this 

2!  The  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  the  city  from  the  county 

3.  The'moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  the  city  under  the  ninth  section  of 
this  act;  .    '. •  •   .      ' 

4.  All  other  monevs  received  by  the  treasurer  of  said  city,  subject  to  the  order 
of  the  board,  specifying  the  sources  from  which  they  shall  have  been  derived  ; 


SCHENECTADY.  453 

5.  The  manner  in  which  such  sums  of  money  shall  have  hecn  expended,  speci- 
fying the  amount  under  each  head  of  expenditure;  and  the  common  council  shall, 
at  least  ten  days  before  such  election,  cause  the  same  to  be  published  in  nil  newt- 
papers  of  said  city. 

§  20.  The  common  council  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty,  to  p;^s 
such  ordinances  and  regulations  as  the  said  board  may  report  as  necessary  for 
the  protection,  preservation,  safe  keeping  and  care  of  the  school-houses,  lots, 
sites,  appurtenances  and  appendages,  libraries  and  all  necessary  property  belong- 
ing to  or  connected  with  the  schools  of  said  city,  and  to  impose  such  penalties  for 
the  violation  thereof  as  the  common  council  are  authorized  to  impose  by  section 
nine  of  chapter  one  hundred  ami  fifty-five  of  the  Session  Laws  of  1848;  and  all 
such  penalties  shall  be  collected  in  the  same  manner  that  the  penalties  for  the 
violations  of  the  city  ordinances  are  by  law  collected,  and  when  collected  shall  be 
paid  to  the  treasurer  of  the  city,  to  the  credit  of  the  said  board  of  education,  and 
shall  be  subject  to  their  order  in  the  same  manner  as  other  moneys  raised  pursuant 
to  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  21.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  clerk  of  said  city,  immediately  after  the  elec- 
tion of  any  person  as  commissioner  of  common  schools,  personally  or  in  writing 
to  notify  him  of  his  election;  and  if  any  such  person  shall  not,  within  ten  days 
after  receiving  such  notice  of  his  election,  take  and  subscribe  the  constitutional 
oath,  and  file  the  same  with  the  clerk  of  said  city,  the  common  council  may  con- 
sider it  as  a  refusal  to  serve,  and  proceed  to  supply  the  vacancy  occasioned  by 
such  refusal,  and  the  person  so  refusing  shall  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  city  treasury, 
for  the  benefit  of  the  schools  of  said  city,  a  penalty  often  dollars. 

§  22.  The  trustees  of  the  Lancaster  School  Society  may,  in  their  discretion,  at  any 
time  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  convey  and  transfer  to  the  said  city  all  its 
school-houses,  sites,  lots  and  all  its  other  property  of  every  name  and  description, 
both  real  and  personal,  and  place  in  the  care  of  the  said  board  of  education  all 
school  records,  account  books,  vouchers,  contracts,  papers,  and  all  other  school 
property  of  said  city.  All  the  said  school-houses,  sites,  lots  and  other  real 
property,  and  the  said  personal  property,  shall  be  used  and  appropriated  for 
school  purposes,  and  shall  form  part  of  the  school  property  of  said  city,  and  the 
proceeds  of  the  same,  when  sold,  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  the  said  city,  to 
be  expended  by  said  board  of  education  in  the  purchase,  repair  or  improvement 
of  school-houses,  lots,  sites,  or  of  school  furniture,  apparatus  and  appurtenances, 
or  in  the  repair  or  improvement  of  the  same. 

§  23.  Every  academical  department  to  be  established  as  aforesaid  shall  be 
under  the  visitation  of  the  regents  of  the  university,  and  shall  be  subject,  in  its 
course  of  education  and  matters  pertaining  thereto  (but  not  in  reference  to  the 
buildings  or  erections  in  which  the  same  is  conducted,  unless  in  case  the 
buildings  or  erections  aforesaid  are  separate  from  those  of  the  common  school 
department),  to  all  the  regulations  made  in  regard  to  academies  by  the  said 
regents;  and  in  such  department  the  qualifications  for  the  entrance  of  any  pupil 
shall  be  the  same  as  those  established  by  the  said  regents  for  admission  into  any 
academy  of  the  state  under  their  supervision.  And  such  academical  department 
shall  share  in  the  distribution  of  the  income  of  the  literature  fund,  and  of  the 
income  of  the  United  States  deposit  fund,  with  academies  in  the  state  subject  to 
the  visitation  of  the  regents. 

§  24.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  purchase,  in  the  corpo- 
rate name  of  the  city  of  Schenectady,  from  the  trustees  of  Union  College,  and  the 
said  trustees  of  Union  College  shall  have  power  to  sell  and  convey  to  said  city, 
the  building  called  the  West  College,  and  the  buildings  connected  therewith,  and 
the  site  on  which  they  stand,  situate  on  Union-street,  in  said  city,  and  lying 
between  College-street  and  the  Erie  canal  and  the  New- York  Central  railroad, 
for  the  use  of  the  said  common  schools  and  academical  department,  and  upon 
such  trusts  and  upon  such  terms,  and  subject  to  such  conditions,  as  shall  be 
agreed  upon  by  and  between  the  said  board  of  education  and  the  said  trustees  of 
Union  College;  and  said  buildings  and  premises,  after  the  same  shall  be  conveyed 
to  the  city  of  Schenectady,  in  pursuance  of  such  agreement,  shall  be  held  by 


454  SENECA. 

said  city  for  such  uses  and  purposes,  and  upon  such  trusts  and  subject  to  such 
conditions,  as  shall  be  so  agreed  upon,  and  as  shall  be  specified  in  the  deed  of 
conveyance.  The  preceding  provisions  of  this  act  in  relation  to  the  purchase  of 
school-houses,  sites  and  lots,  and  other  real  property,  and  to  the  taking,  holding, 
disposition  and  sale  of  the  same,  so  far  as  the  same  are  inconsistent  with  this 
section,  shall  not  be  applicable  to  the  purchase,  sale  and  conveyance  authorized 
in  this  section. 

§  25.  The  said  board  of  education  and  the  said  trustees  of  Union  College  shall 
have  power  from  time  to  time  to  enter  into  such  contracts  as  they  may  deem 
expedient,  in  relation  to  the  organization,  superintendence  and  management  of 
the  said  academical  department,  the  prescribing  the  course  of  studies  and  system 
of  discipline,  and  the  appointment  and  payment  of  the  professors  and  teachers  in 
such  academical  department;  and,  also,  in  relation  to  the  terms  upon  which  the 
pupils  in  said  academical  department  may  receive  books  from  the  libraries  of 
Union  College,  or  attend  the  lectures  of  the  professors  in  said  college,  or  bo 
admitted,  when  prepared,  as  members  in  full  standing  of  its  several  classes. 
Such  contracts,  when  entered  into,  shall  be  binding  on  said  board  of  education 
and  the  said  trustees  of  Union  College,  and  shall  be  faithfully  executed.  The 
preceding  provisions  of  this  act,  in  relation  to  the  powers  and  duties  of  said  hoard 
of  education  in  reference  to  the  academical  department,  shall  be  deemed  modified 
by  this  section,  and  such  power  and  duties  shall  he  exercised  only  in  conformity 
to  the  contracts  which  may  he  entered  into  under  this  section. 

§  26.  This  act  shall  extend  over  and  be  applicable  to  all  the  territory  lying 
within  the  corporate  limits  of  the  said  city  ;  and  the  office  of  town  superintendent 
of  common  schools,  so  far  as  it  is  applicable  to  the  said  city  of  Schenectady,  is 
hereby  abolished. 

§  27.  This  act  shall  take  effect  immediately,  and  all  acts  and  parts  of  acts 
inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act  are  hereby  repealed. 


SENECA. 
[Laws  of  1844,  chap.  175.] 

Section  1.  It  shall  be  lawful  for  the  trustees  of  school  district  number  one,  in 
the  town  of  Seneca,  in  the  county  of  Ontario,  at  the  next  annual  meeting  of  the 
district  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  to  submit  for  the  consideration  of  such  meet- 
ing a  proposition  graduating  the  rates  of  tuition  to  be  paid  by  scholars  attending 
the  different  departments  into  which  such  school  is  now  divided  ;  if  the  same  is 
approved  or  shall  be  so  amended  as  to  be  approved  by  a  majority  of  those  present, 
qualified  to  vote  in  such  meetings,  such  rates  may  he  charged  and  collected,  but 
they  shall  not  be  rabed  during  the  year  next  following  their  adoption. 

§  2.  At  any  annual  meeting  of  the  district,  after  such  lates  of  tuition  have  been 
adopted,  the  "same  may  be  raised,  reduced  or  entirely  abolished,  by  a  majority  of 
such  meeting. 

[Laws  of  1853,  chap.  252,  as  amended  by  chap.  357  o/1855.  ] 

Skction  1.  The  inhabitants  of  school  district  number  one,  in  the  town  of 
Seneca,  in  the  county  of  Ontario,  shall  at  the  next  election  of  a  trustee  of  said 
district,  and  at  each  annual  election  thereafter,  elect  a  trustee  who  shall  hold  his 
office  for  five  years,  and  until  another  trustee  is  elected  in  his  place,  making  the 
whole  number  of  trustees  thereof  five. 

§  2.  At  the  annual  election  of  said  district,  to  be  held  in  the  year  one  thousand 
eight  hundred  and  fifty-six,  said  district  number  one  shall,  in  addition  to  the  elec- 
tion of  a  trustee  to  fill  the  vacancy  which  will  then  occur,  also  elect  a  trustee  who 
shall  hold  his  office  for  two  years,  and  shall  also  elect  a  trustee  who  shall  hold 
his  office  for  three  years,  and  until  others  are  elected  in  their  places. 


SENECA.  i .-,.-, 

§  3.  The  saifl  trustees  may,  whenever  they  deem  it  necessary,  call  district  mi  el 
ings  for  the  transaction  of  any  business  relating  t<>  said  district,  by  publishing  a 
notice  of  such  meeting  in  any  two  of  the  public  newspapers  of  the  village  of 

Geneva,  or  if  there  he  hut  one  sucli  newspaper,  then  in  such  newspaper  once  in 
each  week  for  two  weeks  in  succession,  and  by  posting  a  copy  of  such  notice  in 
three  public  places  in  said  district,  fourteen  days  before  such  meeting  shall  be 
held;  such  notice  shall  contain  the  time  and  place  of  said  meeting,  and  Btate  t)  e 
purpose  thereof,  and  be  signed  by  at  least  three  of  said  trustees;  and  the 
meeting  held  in  pursuance  thereof  shall  have  all  the  powers  and  authority  of  a 
regular  meeting  of  said  district. 

§4.  The  said  trustees  or  their  successors  are  hereby  authorized  to  employ  a 
clerk,  or  such  other  official  labor,  counsel  or  assistant  in  and  about  the  business 
and  affairs  of  the  district,  at  such  salary  as  a  majority  of  the  legal  voters  of  said 
district  at  any  meeting  thereof  shall  determine,  which  salary  may  he  raised  by  a 
tax  upon  the  inhabitants  of  said  district.  The  said  trustees  may  also,  with  the 
concurrence  of  a  majority  of  the  legal  voters  at  any  meeting  of  said  district,  raise 
by  tax  a  sufficient  sum  for  the  purpose  of  insuring  the  property  of  the  district 
against  loss  by  fire,  and  also  for  the  payment  of  a  salary  to  the  librarian  of  Baid 
district. 

§  5.  The  said  trustees  are  hereby  authorized  to  raise  by  tax  a  sufficient  sum 
to  pay  the  interest  which  has  accrued  or  may  hereafter  accrue  on  the  sums  now 
voted  by  said  district,  to  be  paid  by  instalments  ;  and  they  may  hereafter,  at  any 
meeting*  regularly  called,  raise  by  tax  upon  the  inhabitants  of  said  district,  when- 
ever a  majority  of  the  legal  voters  thereof  at  such  meeting  shall  so  determine, 
any  moneys  for  the  purposes  of  said  district,  subject,  however,  to  the  consent  of 
the  Superintendent  of  Public  Instruction,  to  be  expressed  in  writing,  which  con- 
sent shall  be  filed  in  the  office  of  the  town  clerk  of  said  town  of  Seneca. 

§  6.  The  trustees  of  said  district  shall  have  authority  to  make  regulations 
respecting  the  attendance  of  the  children  of  the  district  in  the  school-houses 
thereof,  the  transfer  of  them  from  one  school-house  to  another,  and  the  instruction 
and  studies  to  be  given  and  pursued  in  the  schools  thereof. 

§  7.  The  inhabitants  of  said  district,  authorized  to  vote  as  aforesaid,  shall  at 
the  first  district  meeting  duly  held  for  the  election  of  officers,  and  every  third 
year  thereafter,  and  as  often  as  the  office  becomes  vacant,  elect  a  suitable  person 
treasurer  of  said  district,  who  shall  hold  his  office  for  three  years  and  until  a 
successor  is  elected  or  appointed  in  his  place,  unless  sooner  removed  by  the  trustees 
of  the  district  for  misconduct  in  office;  to  make  which  removal  for  that  cause 
the  trustees  are  hereby  authorized,  in  which  case  and  in  case  of  a  vacancy  th.ey 
mav  appoint  a  treasurer  in  his  place.  The  person  so  elected  or  appointed  treasurer 
shall  give  a  bond  to  the  trustees  and  their  successors,  by  the  name  of  the  Geneva 
union  school,  with  sufficient  sureties,  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  his  duties. 
The  amount  and  form  of  such  bond  and  the  sufficiency  of  the  sureties  shall  he 
settled  and  determined  by  the  trustees.  Such  treasurer  shall  receive,  keep  and 
disburse  the  moneys  of  the  district,  under  the  direction  of  the  trustees. 

§  8.  The  said  trustees  and  their  successors  in  office  are  hereby  created  a  body 
corporate,  by  the  name  of  "  the  Geneva  union  school,"  and  empowered  to  estab- 
lish and  organize  a  classical  school  by  that  name  in  said  district  and  village  of 
Geneva,  which  school  shall  be  subject  to  the  visitation  of  the  regents  of  the 
university  of  this  state,  and  to  all  laws  and  regulations  applicable  to  incorporated 
academies  thereof,  and  shall  be  entitled  to  all  the  privileges  of  such  academies, 
and  to  share  in  the  distribution  of  the  money  of  the  literature  fund  of  this  state, 
as  the  academies  thereof;  provided,  however,  that  this  act  shall  not  affect  the  rights 
and  duties  of  said  trustees  and  district  under  the  statutes  of  this  state  relating  to 
common  schools. 


456  SING  SING. 

SING  SING, 
f  Laws  of  1854,  chap.  314.] 

Section  1.  The  village  of  Sing  Sing  shall  forma  permanent  school  district , 
and  the  electors  residing  within  the  bounds  of  said  village,  at  their  annual  charter 
election,  or  at  any  time  thereafter,  upon  the  usual  notice  being  given,  may  deter- 
mine by  a  majority  of  votes,  by  ballot,  upon  the  expediency  of  establishing  free 
schools  in  said  village.  The  trustees  of  the  village  shall  conduct  the  election, 
and  the  ballots  having  written  or  printed  on  them  the  words  "  For  free  schools," 
or  "  Against  free  schools,"  shall  be  duly  canvassed,  and  the  result  declared  by 
them  in  the  usual  manner. 

§  2.  The  trustees  of  said  school  district  shall  be  elected  in  the  manner  and 
shall  hold  their  offices  for  the  terms  prescribed  by  the  common  school  law  of  this 
state ;  and  upon  the  decision  of  the  legal  voters  of  said  village  in  favor  of  establish- 
ing free  schools,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  district  trustees,  on  or  before  the  first  day 
of  December  of  each  year,  to  estimate,  determine  and  certify  the  amount  of  money, 
m  addition  to  the  funds  now  provided  by  law  and  apportioned  to  the  district,  that 
will  be  required  to  support  all  the  schools  under  their  charge  ;  the  said  amount 
shall  in  no  case  exceed  three  times  the  whole  amount  of  funds  "  for  the  support 
of  schools"  that  shall  have  been  apportioned  for  the  year  preceding. 

§  3.  The  supervisors  of  the  town  of  Ossining  shall,  on  the  presentation  of  the 
certificate  of  the  said  trustees,  specifying  the  amount  of  school  moneys  necessary 
to  be  raised  for  said  village,  authorized  by  the  preceding  section,  prepare  a  sepa- 
rate tax  list  and  assess  therein  the  required  amount  of  school  moneys  upon  the 
taxable  property  within  the  village,  according  to  the  estimated  value  thereof  in 
the  assessment  roll  of  that  year,  and  shall  deliver  such  tax  list  to  the  town  collec- 
tor, who  shall  collect  the  same,  with  the  other  yearly  taxes,  in  the  manner  and 
by  the  authority  with  which  other  taxes  are  collected,  and  shall  pay  the  whole 
amount  certified  to  be  necessary,  exclusive  of  fees  of  collection,  to  the  town  super- 
intendent of  schools  of  said  town. 

§  4.  The  town  superintendent  aforesaid  shall  have  the  authority  and  exercise 
the  duties  prescribed  in  the  general  school  law  of  this  state  over  the  said  school 
district,  and  shall  pay  out  of  the  funds  paid  into  his  hands  by  virtue  of  the  preced- 
ing section,  upon  the  drafts  of  the  trustees,  such  sums  as  may  be  certified  by 
them  to  be  due  to  qualified  teachers  that  have  been  employed  by  them,  and 
include  such  payments,  with  any  balances  or  deficiences,  in  his  annual  report  of 
the  schools  of  his  town  to  the  department,  and  for  record;  he  shall  also  be  author- 
ized, upon  a  vote  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  district  at  their  annual  meeting,  or  the 
application  of  the  trustees,  to  apply  the  "  library  money"  apportioned  to  the  said 
district  to  the  purchase  of  text  books  and  school  apparatus  until  the  schools  are 
sufficiently  supplied. 

§  5.  The  district  trustees  aforesaid  shall  be  authorized  to  raise  by  tax,  annually, 
for  the  purchase  of  fuel,  ordinary  repairs  and  improvement  of  the  school  propertv 
of  the  district,  a  sum  not  exceding  one  hundred  dollars;  and  in  case  of  the 
enlargement,  rebuilding  or  the  erection  of  new  school-houses,  the  said  trustees 
shall  be  authorized  to  levy  and  raise  on  the  taxable  property  of  the  district,  with 
the  assent  of  the  town  superintendent,  the  amount  required  for  such  object,  which 
sum  shall  not  exceed  four  times  the  usual  amount  authorized  by  law  for  building 
new  district  school-houses,  which  amount,  so  levied,  shall  be  collected  as  other 
school  moneys  are,  by  the  town  collector,  and  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  said  trustees, 
who  shall  make  an  exhibit  and  statement  of  all  such  receipts  and  expenditures 
with  his  other  accounts  in  his  book,  annually,  as  required  by  the  school  law- 
aforesaid. 

§  6.  There  shall  be,  after  the  establishment  of  free  schools  in  said  village  on 
the  preceding  plan,  no  rate  bill  for  the  attendance  of  scholars  or  any  other  exac- 
tion whatever  made  out  against  or  demanded  by  the  trustees  of  any  person  send- 
ing children  to  such  schools  in  the  village  of  Sing  Sing. 


SYRACUSE.  457 

SYRACUSE. 

[  Laws  of  1854,  chap.  28.  ] 

Titles  3  and  7  provide  for  the  election  of  two  commissioners  of  common 
schools  in  each  of  the  eight  wards  of  the  city,  to  hold  office  for  two  years ;  hut 
so  classified  that  one  shall  be  elected  each  year. 


TITLE    IX THE    BOARD    OF    EDUCATION. 

§  1.  The  commissioners  of  common  schools  of  said  city  shall  constitute  a  board 
of  education.  A  majority  of  said  commissioners  shall  constitute  a  quorum.  The 
board  shall  meet  annually,  on  the  second  Tuesday  after  the  annual  charter 
election,  and  appoint  a  president  from  their  own  number,  and  a  clerk.  The  presi- 
dent shall  have  a  vote  on  all  questions,  and  in  case  of  his  absence  a  president  pro 
tempore  may  be  appointed. 

The  compensation  of  the  clerk  shall  be  fixed  by  said  board.  The  president  and 
clerk  shall  hold  their  offices  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board. 

The  commissioners  shall  receive  no  compensation  for  their  services. 

§  2.  The  clerk  of  said  board  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  thereof, 
and  perform  such  other  duties  as  the  board  may  prescribe ;  which  record,  or  a 
transcript  thereof  certified  by  the  president  and  clerk,  shall  be  received  in  all 
courts  as  prima  facie  evidence  of  the  facts  therein  set  forth.  And  such  records, 
and  all  the  books  and  accounts  of  the  said  board,  shall  at  all  times  be  subject  to 
the  inspection  of  the  common  council  and  of  any  committee  thereof. 

§  3.  The  board  of  education  shall  annually  report  to  the  common  council,  on 
or  before  the  first  day  of  April,  after  the  charter  election,  a  detailed  statement 
of  the  amount  estimated  by  them  to  be  necessary  to  be  expended  by  said  board, 
for  each  of  the  following  purposes,  for  the  current  year: 

1.  To  defray  the  expenses  of  teachers'  wages; 

2.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  necessary  expenses  of  keeping  the  school- 
houses  in  order,  exclusive  of  repairs; 

3.  To  defray  the  expenses  for  janitors'  services; 

4.  To  defray  the  expenses  of  the  district  libraries ; 

5.  To  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  board  of  education ; 

6.  To  defray  the  expenses  of  temporary  repairs  upon  school-houses ; 

7.  The  amount  of  moneys  on  hand  and  the  amount  receivable  during  such 
year  by  said  board  for  school  purposes,  other  than  from  city  taxes. 

§  4.  Upon  the  reception  of  the  report,  in  the  last  section  required  to  be  made,  the 
common  council  shall  proceed  to  consider  the  same,  and  approve,  increase  or 
diminish  any  or  all  the  said  estimates,  but  they  shall  not  diminish  the  aggregate 
amount  so  that  the  sum  to  be  raised  by  the  city  shall  be  less  than  twice,  nor 
increase  the  same  so  that  the  sum  to  be  raised  by  the  city  shall  be  more  than 
three  times  the  amount  received  during  the  preceding  year  from  the  state  foi 
school  purposes ;  and  after  having  fixed  the  amount  to  be  expended  for  each  and 
all  the  purposes  mentioned  in  the  last  preceding  section,  the  same  shall  be  certi- 
fied to  the  board  of  education,  who  shall  during  such  fiscal  year  limit  the 
expenditures  for  such  purpose,  so  that  the  same  shall  not  exceed  such  appropri- 
ation, and  not  lessen  the  length  of  the  time  each  school  shall  be  kept  in  each 
district.  In  case  a  greater  sum  shall  be  expended  for  any  purpose  than  the 
appropriation,  the  city  shall  not  be  liable  for  the  same,  but  the  members  of  tl  o 
board  of  education  voting  therefor,  or  either  of  them,  shall  be  personally  liable 
therefor  to  the  party  entitled  to  payment. 

§  5.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duly, 
subject  to  the  provisions  of  this  act : 

[Code.J  58 


458  SYRACUSE. 

1.  To  have  the  care  and  custody  and  provide  for  the  safe  keeping  of  school- 
houses,  out-houses,  books,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  the  district  libraries  in 
said  city ; 

2.  To  contract  with,  license  and  employ  all  teachers  of  the  several  publio 
schools  therein ; 

3.  To  contract  for  and  superintend  the  building,  enlarging,  improving,  furnish- 
ing and  repairing  of  all  school-houses  ordered  by  the  common  council,  and  all 
the  repairs  and  improvements  around  the  same.  The  same  to  be  done  under  the 
direction  of  the  common  council ; 

i.  To  audit  accounts  and  order  the  payment  of  the  same,  if  contracted  by 
them  for  either  of  the  purposes  stated  in  the  third  section  of  this  title; 

5.  To  make  all  selections  of  books  for  the  district  libraries  or  for  school  pur- 
poses in  said  city ; 

6.  In  cases  where  no  other  provision  is  made  by  this  act,  to  supply  the  places 
and  perform  the  several  duties  of  superintendents  of  common  schools  in  towns; 
and,  in  respect  to  the  several  school  districts  in  said  city,  to  supply  the  place  and 
perform  the  several  duties  required  to  be  performed  by  trustees  of  the  several 
school  districts  in  this  state  by  the  general  statutes  relating  to  common  schools. 

§  6.  All  resolutions  for  the  payment  of  money,  adopted  by  the  board  of  educa- 
tion, shall  immediately  after  the  adoption  of  the  same  be  certified  by  its  clerk 
and  the  president  of  the  board  to  the  comptroller  of  the  city,  with  a  brief  state- 
ment of  the  purpose  for  which  the  payment  is  made,  and  the  fund  out  of  which  it 
is  made;  on  receiving  such  certificate,  the  comptroller  shall  draw  his  warrant  for 
the  amount  or  amounts  so  certified  on  the  treasurer  of  said  city ;  such  warrant 
shall  specify  for  what  purpose  the  sum  therein  named  is  paid,  and  that  the  same 
is  to  be  paid  out  of  the  school  fund  of  said  city. 

§  7.  Between  the  first  day  of  July  and  the  first  day  of  August,  in  each  year,  said 
board  shall  make  and  transmit  to  the  county  clerk  a  report,  in  writing,  bearing 
date  the  first  day  of  July,  in  the  year  of  its  transmission,  and  containing  an 
account  and  description  of  all  the  common  schools  kept  in  said  city  during  the 
preceding  year,  and  the  time  they  have  severally  been  kept;  the  number  of 
children  taught  in  said  schools  respectively;  the  number  of  children  over  the  age 
of  four  and  under  the  age  of  twenty-one  years  residing  in  said  city  on  the  first 
day  of  January  of  that  year;  the  whole  amount  of  school  moneys  received 
by  the  treasurer  of  said  city  during  the  year  preceding,  distinguishing  the  amount 
received  from  the  county  treasurer,  from  the  city  collectors,  and  from  any  other 
source;  the  manner  in  which  said  moneys  have  been  expended,  and  whether  any 
and  what  part  remains  unexpended,  and  for  what  cause;  the  amount  of  money 
received  for  tuition  fees  from  foreign  pupils  during  the  year,  and  the  amount  paid 
for  teachers'  wages  in  addition  to  the  public  moneys,  with  such  other  information 
as  relates  to  the  common  schools  of  said  city,  or  such  as  the  common  council  may 
desire.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be 
their  duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  upon  the  real  and  personal  estate 
of  said  city  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  for  ordinary  city  taxes  or  for  county 
or  city  charges,  in  addition  to  the  amount  of  school  moneys  now  or  hereafter 
appropriated,  as  provided  by  law  for  common  schools  in  said  city,  such  sums  as 
may  be  determined  by  the  common  council  to  be  necessary  or  proper  for  any  or 
all  of  the  following  purposes  : 

1.  To  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites  of  or  for  school-houses  ; 

2.  To  build,  purchase,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  or  repair  school-houses, 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances ; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages;  but  the  power  herein  granted  shall  not  be  deemed  to 
authorize  the  furnishing  of  class  or  text  books  for  any  scholar  whose  parents  or 
guardians  shall  be  able  to  furnish  the  same ; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defiay  the  expenses  of  the  common  schools  and  the 
expenses  of  the  school  libraries  of  said  city; 

5.  To  pay  the  wages  of  teachers,  due  after  the  application  of  the  public  moneys 
which  may,  bylaw,  be  appropriated  and  provided  for  that  purpose;  provided, 


TROY.  459 

nevertheless,  that  such  tax  shall  not  be  laid  oftener  than  once  in  each  year.     Nor 
shall  the  amount  to  he  raised  in  any  one  year,  for  buying  sites  and  erecting  Bud 

repairing  school-houses  and  appurtenances,  exceed  five  thousand  dollars. 

§  8.  The  common  council  shall  cause  the  amount  of  the  tax,  at  any  time  ordered 
to  be  raised  in  pursuance  of  this  act,  to  be  added  to  the  amount  which  is  other- 
wise authorized  by  law  to  be  raised  by  tax  in  said  city;  and  the  common  council 
shall  cause  the  same,  with  the  collectors'  fees  thereon,  to  be  assessed,  levied  and 
collected  at  the  same  time,  and  by  the  same  warrant  and  in  the  same  maimer, 
with  the  taxes  raised  for  city  expenses  under  and  by  virtue  of  the  act  of  incorpo- 
ration of  said  city. 

§  9.  All  moneys  required  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act,  which  the  board  of 
education  is  authorized  to  expend,  on  being  raised  as  herein  provided,  with  all 
other  moneys  received  from  any  source  for  school  purposes,  shall  be  deposited, 
for  the  safe  keeping  thereof,  with  the  treasurer  of  said  city  to  the  credit  of  the 
school  fund,  and  shall  be  drawn  out,  in  pursuance  of  a  resolution  or  resolutions 
of  said  board,  by  warrants  drawn  by  the  comptroller,  payable  to  the  order  of  the 
person  or  persons  entitled  to  receive  such  moneys,  in  the  manner  prescribed  by 
the  sixth  section  of  this  title;  and  said  treasurer  shall  keep  the  school  funds, 
authorized  by  this  act  to  be  received  by  him,  separate  and  distinct  from  any  other 
fund  which  he  is  or  may  by  law  be  authorized  to  receive.  Nor  shall  any  of  the 
moneys  belonging  to  said  school  fund  be  paid  out  by  the  treasurer,  except  upon 
the  warrant  of  the  comptroller,  drawn  on  said  fund  as  aforesaid.  Nor  shall  the 
comptroller  draw  any  warrant  or  order,  payable  out  of  said  school  fund,  except 
upon  the  resolutions  of  the  board  of  education,  and  as  specified  in  this  and  the 
sixth  section  of  this  title.  Nor  shall  any  part  of  said  school  fund  be  borrowed 
from  such  fund,  directly  or  indirectly,  by  the  city,  or  in  any  manner  transferred 
to  any  city  fund,  but  the  same  shall  remain  in  the  treasury,  sacredly  set  apart  and 
dedicated  to  school  purposes,  and  to  be  drawn  therefrom  only  for  such  purposes, 
and  in  the  manner  herein  provided. 

§  10.  The  city  of  Syracuse  shall  be  taken  and  deemed  a  town,  for  all  purposes, 
in  respect  to  making  returns  in  respect  to  common  schools,  and  for  receiving 
money  from  the  state,  or  other  sources,  for  school  or  library  purposes. 

§  11.  No  school  commissioner  shall  be  interested  in  any  work  done  or  supplies 
furnished  in  pursuance  of  any  action  of  the  board  of  education;  nor  shall  any 
alderman  or  comptroller  be  interested  in  any  work  done  or  supplies  furnished  in 
pursuance  of  any  action  of  the  common  council.  If  any  such  person  shall  violate 
any  of  the  provisions  of  this  section,  he  shall  forfeit  and  pay  the  sum  of  one 
hundred  dollars,  to  be  sued  for  and  recovered  by  and  in  the  name  of  any  citizen 
of  said  city. 


TROY. 

[Laws  of  1849,  chap.  198,  as  amended  by  chap.  47  of  1851,  chap.  366  of  1851, 
and  chap.  81  of  1854.] 

Skction  1.  Each  public  school  at  present  existing,  or  which  may  hereafter  be 
maintained  in  the  city  of  Troy,  shall  constitute  a  school  district,  under  the  super- 
vision and  direction  of  the  board  of  education  of  said  city,  and  the  schools  therein 
shall  he  free  to  all  children  between  the  ages  of  four  and  twenty-one  years  residing 
in  such  wards. 

§  2.  There  shall  be  erected  in  each  of  the  said  wards,  as  hereinafter  provided , 
one  or  more  school-houses  of  size  and  form  sufficient  to  accommodate  all  the 
children  between  the  aforesaid  ages  residing  in  such  wards.  The  purchase  of 
sites  for  school-houses  shall  be  agreed  upon  in  joint  committee  of  three  from  each 
hoard  hereinafter  mentioned  ;  and  in  case  of  disagrement,  the  decision  shall  rest 
with  the  common  council. 


460  TROY. 

§  3.  The  title  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  hooks,  apparatus  awl 
appurtenances,  and  all  other  school  property  in  this  act  mentioned,  shall  he  vested 
in  the  city  of  Troy,  and  the  same,  while  used  or  appropriated  for  school  purposes, 
shall  not  he  levied  upon  or  sold  by  virtue  of  any  warrant  of  execution,  nor  I  e 
subject  to  taxation  for  any  purpose  whatever;  and  the  said  city  in  its  corporate 
capacity  shall  be  able  to  take,  hold  and  dispose  of  any  real  or  personal  estate, 
transferred  to  it  by  gift,  grant,  bequest  or  devise,  for  the  use  of  the  common 
schools  of  the  said  city,  whether  the  same  shall  be  transferred  in  term  to  said 
city  by  its  proper  style  or  by  any  other  designation,  or  to  any  person  or  persons 
or  body  for  the  use  of  said  schools. 

§  4.  The  common  council  of  said  city  may,  upon  the  recommendation  of  the 
board  of  education  hereinafter  mentioned,  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or 
sites,  or  any  other  school  property  now  or  hereafter  belonging  to  said  city,  upon 
such  terms  as  the  said  common  council  may  deem  reasonable.  The  proceeds  of 
all  such  sales  shall  be  paid  to  the  chamberlain  of  the  city,  and  shall  be  by  the 
said  board  of  education  again  expended  in  the  construction,  repairs  or  improve- 
ments of  other  school-houses,  lots,  sites  or  school  furniture,  apparatus  or  appur- 
tenances. 

§  5.  [Relates  to  the  number  and  election  of  commissioners.  As  amended  by 
chap.  186  of  1851,  it  provides  for  the  election  of  two  commissioners  from  each 
ward,  except  the  5th,  6th  and  9th,  which  have  but  one  each.] 

§  6.  Within  ten  days  after  their  election,  as  in  the  last  section  mentioned,  said 
commissioners,  so  elected  from  those  wards  in  which  more  than  one  commissioner 
is  elected,  shall  meet  at  the  office  of  the  clerk  of  said  city,  and  shall  determine 
by  lot  which  of  the  two  persons  so  elected  for  each  ward  shall  serve  for  the  term 
ending  on  the  second  Tuesday  of  March,  1851,  and  which  for  the  term  ending  on 
the  second  Tuesday  of  March,  1852. 

8  7.  In  each  year  thereafer  there  shall  be  elected  in  said  city,  at  the  annual 
charter  election,  in  the  same  manner  and  under  the  same  regulations  as  other 
ward  officers  are  elected,  one  commissioner  of  common  schools  for  each  ward,  to 
supply  the  places  of  those  whose  terms  are  about  to  expire.  The  term  of  office 
of  all  commissioners  elected  pursuant  to  this  act  shall  commence  on  the  Tuesday 
next  after  their  election,  and  shall  continue  two  years.  The  number  of  commis- 
sioners of  common  schools  in  the  city  of  Troy  shall  always  be  the  same  as  the 
number  of  aldermen  in  said  city. 

§  8.  The  common  council  of  said  city,  upon  the  nomination  of  the  board  of 
education,  may  make  appointment  of  commissioners  of  common  schools  to  fill 
vacancies  which  may  occur  from  any  cause  other  than  the  expiration  of  the  term 
of  office  of  those  elected:  and  the  removal  from  the  ward  for  which  he  was 
appointed  or  elected  ;  and  neglect  to  attending  three  meetings  of  the  board,  unless 
under  circumstances  which  shall  be  sustained  by  the  board,  shall  be  deemed  a 
resignation  of  his  office  by  any  commissioner.  The  commissioners  so  appointed 
shall  serve  out  the  unexpired  term  of  the  commissioners  whose  places  they  were 
appointed  to  fill. 

§  9.  Any  commissioner  of  common  schools  in  said  city  may  be  removed  from 
office  for  official  misconduct  by  the  common  council  of  said  city,  by  a  vote  of 
two-thirds  of  the  members  thereof;  but  a  written  copy  of  the  charges  against 
said  commissioner  shall  be  served  upon  him,  and  he  shall  be  allowed  an  opportu- 
nity to  refute  any  such  charge  of  misconduct  before  removal. 

§  10.  The  commissioners  of  common  schools  in  said  city  shall  constitute  a  board 
to  be  styled  the  "Board  of  Education  of  the  city  of  Troy,"  which  shall  be  a 
corporate  body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  upon  them  by 
virtue  of  this  act.  A  majority  of  the  hoard  shall  form  a  quorum.  The  first 
meeting  of  the  board  shall  be  on  the  second  Wednesday  next  after  their  election, 
and  the  annual  meeting  of  the  board  thereafter  shall  be  on  the  second  Wednesday 
next  after  their  election.  At  the  first  meeting  of  the  board,  and  annually  there- 
after, at  the  annual  meeting,  they  shall  elect  one  of  their  number  president  of  the 


TROY.  4GI 

board  ;  and  whenever  lie  shall  he  absent  a  president  pro  tempore  may  he  appoint- 
ed.    The  said  commissioners  shall  receive  no  compensation  for  their  services. 

§  11.  The  said  commissioners  shall  appoint  a  clerk,  who  may  be  one  of  their 
number,  who  shall  devote  his  whole  time  to  the  interests  of  the  schools,  and  hold 
his  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board.  His  compensation  shall  be  fixed  by 
them.  The  said  clerk  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of  the  board,  and 
perform  such  other  duties  as  the  board  may  prescribe;  the  said  record,  or  tran- 
script thereof  certified  by  the  president  and  clerk,  shall  be  received  in  all  courts 
as  prima  facie  evidence  of  facts  therein  set  forth ;  and  such  records,  and  all  the 
books,  accounts,  vouchers  and  papers  of  said  board,  shall  at  all  times  be  subject 
to  the  inspection  of  the  common  council  and  of  any  committee  thereof. 

§  12.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  he 
their  duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time  by  tax,  to  be  levied  equally  upon  all  the 
real  and  personal  estate  in  said  city  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  for  the  ordi- 
nary city  taxes  or  for  city  or  county  charges,  such  sum  or  sums  of  money,  as 
may  be  necessary  or  proper  for  any  or  all  the  following  purposes: 

1.  To  purchase  school-houses,  and  also  to  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites 
therefor ; 

2.  To  enable  the  board  of  education  to  build,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and 
repair  school-houses,  and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances  ; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages ;  but  the  power  herein  granted  shall  not  be  deemed  to 
authorize  the  furnishing  with  class  or  text  books  any  scholar  whose  parents  or 
guardian  shall  be  able  to  furnish  the  same; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  contingent  ex[>enses  of  the  common  schools, 
and  the  expenses  of  the  school  libraries  of  said  city; 

5.  To  pay  the  wages  of  teachers  due  after  the  application  of  the  public  moneys 
which  may  by  law  be  appropriated  and  provided  for  that  purpose;  provided, 
nevertheless,  that  the  tax  to  be  levied  as  aforesaid,  and  collected  by  virtue  of 
this  act,  shall  be  collected  at  the  same  time  and  in  the  same  manner  as  other  city 
taxes ; 

6.  And  the  amount  to  be  raised  for  teachers'  wages  and  contingent  expenses  in 
any  one  year  shall  not  be  less  than  twice  nor  more  than  four  times  the  amount 
apportioned  to  said  city  from  the  common  school  fund  of  the  state  during  the 
previous  year ;  nor  shall  the  amount  to  be  raised  in  one  year,  after  the  first  Tuesday 
in  March,  one  thousand  eight  hundred  and  fifty-one,  for  purchasing  sites  and 
erecting  and  repairing  school-houses,  exceed  five  thousand  dollars,  unless,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  common  council,  a  larger  sum  should  be  required  to  meet 
unforeseen  contingencies.  And  the  common  council  of  said  city  are  authorized 
and  directed,  when  necessary,  to  raise  by  loan,  in  anticipation  of  the  taxes,  the 
moneys  so  to  be  raised,  collected  and  levied  as  aforesaid. 

•  §  13.  All  moneys  to  be  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  all 
school  moneys  by  law  appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  city,  shall  be  paid  to 
the  chamberlain  thereof,  who,  together  with  the  sureties  upon  his  official  bond, 
shall  be  accountable  therefor,  in  the  same  manner  as  for  other  moneys  of  said 
citv  ;  and  the  said  chamberlain  shall  be  liable  to  the  same  penalties  for  any  offi- 
cial misconduct  in  relation  to  the  said  moneys,  as  for  any  similar  misconduct  in 
relation  to  other  moneys  of  said  city. 

§  14.  The  said  board  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  be  their  duty  : 

1.  To  establish  and  organize,  in  the  several  wards  of  said  city,  such  and  so 
many  schools  ( including  the  common  schools  now  existing  therein  )  as  they  shall 
deem  requisite  and  expedient,  and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same; 

2.  To  build,  lease  or  contract  for  the  occupation  and  use  of  school-houses  and 
rooms,  and  to  improve  the  same  as  they  may  deem  proper; 

3.  To  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses  and  appurtenances,  as  they  may 
deem  advisable ;  _     . 

4.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books  for  indi- 
gent pupils,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  to  defray  their  contingent  expenses, 
and  the  expense  of  the  school  libraries ; 


462  TROY. 

5.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses,  out-houses, 
books,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  to  see  that  the  ordinances  of  the  common 
council  in  relation  thereto  be  observed ; 

6.  To  contract  with,  license  and  employ  all  teachers  in  said  schools,  and  at 
their  pleasure  to  remove  them  ; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  moneys  appropriated  and  pro- 
vided by  law  for  the  support  of  schools  in  said  city,  so  far  as  the  same  shall  be 
sufficient,  and  the  residue  thereof,  from  the  money  authorized  to  be  raised  for  that 
purpose  by  section  twelve  of  this  act,  by  tax  upon  said  city. 

8.  To  defray  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  the  board,  including  an 
annual  salary  to  the  clerk,  provided  the  account  of  such  expenses  shall  first  be 
audited  and  allowed  by  the  common  council ; 

9.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision  and  management 
of  the  common  schools  in  said  city,  and  from  time  to  time  to  adopt,  alter,  modify 
and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  rules  and  regulations  for  their  organi- 
zation, government  and  instruction,  for  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their  transfer 
from  one  school  to  another,  and  generally  for  the  promotion  of  their  good  order, 
prosperity  and  public  utility ; 

10.  Whenever  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  it  may  be  advisable  to  sell  any  of  the 
school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  any  of  the  school  property  now  or  hereafter  be- 
longing to  the  city,  to  report  the  same  to  the  common  council ; 

11.  To  prepare  and  report  to  the  common  council  such  ordinances  and  regu- 
lations as  may  be  necessary  or  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and 
preservation  of  school-houses,  lots  and  sites  and  apppurtenances,  and  all  the 
property  belonging  to  the  city  connected  with  or  appertaining  to  the  schools, 
and  to  suggest  proper  penalties  for  the  violation  of  such  ordinances  and  regula- 
tions ;  and  aunnually,  on  or  before  the  first  day  of  February  in  each  year,  to 
determine  and  certify  to  said  common  council  the  sum  in  their  opinion  necessary 
or  proper  to  be  raised  under  the  twelfth  section  of  this  act,  for  the  year,  com- 
mencing on  the  first  of  March  thereafter,  specifying  the  sums  required  for  each 
of  the  purposes  therein  mentioned,  and  the  reasons  therefor; 

12.  Between  the  first  day  of  July  and  the  first  day  of  August,  in  each  year, 
to  make  and  transmit  to  the  county  clerk,  or  such  other  officer  as  may  be 
designated  by  law,  a  report  in  writing,  bearing  date  the  first  day  of  July,  in  the 
year  of  its  transmission,  and  stating: 

i.  The  number  of  school-houses  in  said  city,  and  an  account  and  description 
of  all  the  common  schools  kept  in  said  city  during  the  preceding  year,  and  the 
time  they  have  severally  been  taught; 

ii.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  said  schools  respectively,  and  the  number 
of  children  over  the  age  of  four  years  and  under  the  age  of  twenty-one  years 
residing  in  said  city  on  the  first  day  of  January  of  that  year; 

in.  The  whole  amount  of  school  moneys  received  by  the  chamberlain  of  said 
city  during  the  year  preceding,  distinguishing  the  amount  received  from  the 
county  treasurer,  from  the  city  tax,  and  from  any  other  source; 

iv.  The  manner  in  which  such  moneys  have  been  expended,  and  whether  any 
and  what  part  remains  unexpended,  and  for  what  cause; 

v.  The  amount  of  money  received  for  tuition  fees  from  foreign  pupils  during 
the  year,  and  the  amount  paid  for  teachers'  wages  in  addition  to  the  public 
moneys,  with  sucli  other  information  relating  to  the  common  schools  of  said 
city  as  may  from  time  to  time  be  required  by  the  State  Superintendent  of  Com- 
mon Schools. 

§  15.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  each  commissioner  to  visit  the  schools  in  his  ward 
twice  in  each  year;  and  the  board  of  education  shall  provide  that  each  of  the 
schools  in  the  city  shall  be  visited  by  a  committee  of  three  or  more  of  their  num- 
ber, or  by  their  clerk,  at  least  once  in  each  term. 

§  16.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  have  power  to  allow  the  chihlren  of 
persons  not  resident  within  the  city  to  attend  any  of  the  schools  of  said  city  urnler 
the  care  and  control  of  said  board,  upon  such  terms  as  said  board  shall  by  reso- 
lution prescribe,  fixing  the  tuition  which  shall  be  paid  therefor. 


TROY.  4C3 

§  17.  Tt  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  hoard,  in  all  their  expenditures  and  contracts, 
to  have  reference  to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  shall  be  subject  to  their  order 
during  the  current  year,  and  not  to  exceed  that  amount. 

§  18.  The  said  board  of  commissioners  shall  be  trustees  of  the  school  library 
or  libraries  in  said  city,  and  all  the  provisions  of  law  which  now  are  or  hereafter 
may  be  passed  relative  to  district  school  libraries  shall  apply  to  the  said  com- 
missioners; they  shall  also  be  vested  with  the  same  discretion,  as  to  the  disposi- 
tion of  the  moneys  appropriated  by  any  law  of  this  state  for  the  purchase  of 
libraries,  which  is  therein  conferred  upon  the  inhabitants  of  school  districts.  It 
shall  be  their  duty  to  provide  a  library  room  or  rooms,  in  the  several  school- 
houses  in  said  city,  and  the  necessary  furniture  therefor.  The  clerk  of  said  board 
shall  be  the  general  librarian.  The  board  shall  also  appoint  a  librarian  for  each 
school,  to  have  the  care  of  the  books  and  to  superintend  the  letting  out  and 
return  thereof.  The  several  school  librarians  shall  from  time  to  time  inform  the 
general  librarian  of  the  state  and  condition  of  the  libraries,  and  the  said  board, 
or  the  general  librarian  under  the  direction  and  by  resolution  of  the  said  board, 
may  make  all  purchases  of  books  for  the  libraries  and  provide  for  their  equitable 
distribution  among  the  schools,  and  exchange  or  cause  to  be  repaired  the  dam- 
aged books  belonging  thereto,  and  also  sell  any  books  which  may  be  deemed 
useless  or  of  improper  character,  and  apply  the  proceeds  to  the  purchase  of  other 
books  for  said  libraries. 

§  19.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  at  least  fifteen  day3  before  the  annual 
election  for  commissioners  in  each  year,  to  prepare  and  report  to  the  common 
council  true  and  correct  statements  of  the  receipts  and  disbursements  of  moneys, 
under  and  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  this  act,  during  the  preceding  year ; 
in  which  account  shall  be  stated,  under  appropriate  heads  : 

1.  The  moneys  raised  by  the  common  council  under  the  twelfth  section  of 
this  act ; 

2.  The  school  moneys  received  by  the  chamberlain  of  the  city  from  the  county 
treasure-,  distinguishing  between  the  sum  received  from  the  state  and  the  sum 
raised  upon  the  city  by  the  board  of  supervisors ; 

3.  The  moneys  received  by  the  common  council  under  the  third  section  of 
this  act; 

4.  All  moneys  received  by  the  chamberlain  subject  to  the  order  of  the  board, 
specifying  the  sources; 

5.  The  manner  in  which  such  sums  of  money  shall  have  been  expended,  speci- 
fying the  amount  paid  under  each  head  of  expenditure  ; 

And  the  common  council  shall,  ten  days  before  such  election,  cause  the  same 
to  be  published  in  at  least  two  of  the  newspapers  published  in  said  city. 

§  20.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall  have  the  power  to  pass  such 
ordinances  and  regulations  as  the  said  board  of  education  may  report  as  necessary 
and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and  preservation  of  the  school- 
houses,  lots,  sites,  appurtenances  and  appendages,  libraries,  and  all  necessary 
property  belonging  to  or  connected  with  the  schools  in  said  city,  and  to  impose 
proper  penalties  for  the  violation  thereof,  subject  to  the  restrictions  and  limitations 
contained  in  the  act  to  incorporate  the  said  city ;  and  all  such  penalties  shall  be 
collected  in  the  same  manner  that  the  penalties  for  the  violation  of  the  city  ordi- 
nances are  by  law  collected,  and  when  collected  shall  be  paid  to  the  chamberlain 
of  the  city,  and  be  subject  to  the  order  of  the  board  of  education,  in  the  same 
manner  as  other  moneys  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  21.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  common  council,  within  fifteen  days  after 
receiving  the  certificate  of  the  commissioners,  required  by  the  fourteenth  section 
of  this  act,  of  the  sums  necessary  or  proper  to  be  raised  under  the  twelfth  section 
of  this  act,  to  determine  and  certify  to  said  board  of  education  the  amount  that 
will  be  raised  by  them  for  the  year  commencing  on  the  first  of  March  thereafter, 
for  the  purpose  mentioned  in  said  twelfth  section,  distinguishing  between  the 
amount  to  be  raised  for  teachers'  wages  and  contingent  expenses,  and  the  amount 
to  be  raised  for  the  repairs  of  school-houses,  which  amounts  shall  be  subject  to 
the  disposal  of  the  board  of  education. 


464  TROY. 

§  22.  All  the  moneys  required  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  act,  or  received  by 
the  said  city  for  or  on  account  of  the  common  schools,  except  such  sums  as  are 
raised  for  the  purchase  of  sites  for  school-houses,  shall  be  deposited,  for  the  safe 
keeping  thereof,  with  the  chamberlain  of  said  city,  to  the  credit  of  said  board  of 
education,  and  shall  be  drawn  out  in  pursuance  of  a  resolution  or  resolutions  of 
said  board,  by  drafts  drawn  by  the  president  and  countersigned  by  the  clerk  of 
said  board,  payable  to  the  order  of  the  person  or  persons  entitled  to  receive  such 
moneys  ;  and  said  chamberlain  shall  keep  the  funds,  authorized  by  this  act  to  be 
received  by  him,  separate  and  distinct  from  any  other  fund  which  he  is  or  may 
by  law  be  authorized  to  receive. 

§  23.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  clerk  of  said  city,  immediately  after  the  elec- 
tion of  any  person  as  a  commissioner  of  common  schools,  personally  or  in 
writing  to  notify  him  of  his  election,  and  if  any  such  person  shall  not,  within  ten 
alter  receiving  such  notice  of  his  election,  take  and  subscribe  the  constitutional 
oath,  and  file  the  same  with  the  clerk  of  the  said  city,  the  common  council  may 
consider  it  a  refusal  to  serve,  and  proceed  to  supply  the  vacancy  occasioned  by 
such  refusal ;  and  the  person  so  refusing  shall  forfeit  and  pay  to  the  city  chaiu- 
beilain,  for  the  benefit  of  the  tuition  fund,  a  penalty  of  ten  dollars. 

[  Chap.  353,  Laws  of  1850,  as  amended  by  chap.  366,  Laws  of  1851.  ] 

Section  1.  It  shall  be  lawful  for  the  board  of  education  of  the  city  of  Troy, 
and  the  said  board  is  hereby  authorized,  to  discharge  all  the  duties  and  exercise 
all  the  powers  belonging  to  the  offiee  of  town  superintendent  of  common  schools 
by  law,  in  relation  to  the  formation  of  joint  school  districts  out  of  parts  of  said 
city  and  parts  of  the  adjoining  towns,  and  also  in  the  erection  of  separate  school 
districts,  as  hereinafter  provided,  in  either  the  fifth,  sixth  and  seventh  wards 
of  said  city. 

§  2.  Whenever  it  may  become  necessary  or  convenient  to  form  a  joint  district 
out  of  parts  of  said  city  and  of  any  adjoining  town,  the  board  of  education  mny 
depute  any  member  of  .said  board,  or  the  clerk  thereof,  to  meet  with  the  superin- 
tendent of  such  adjoining  town,  and  the  proceedings  of  such  member  of  said 
board,  or  the  clerk  thereof,  and  such  town  superintendent,  in  conformity  with  the 
statute,  duly  certified  under  their  hands,  in  forming,  regulating  and  altering  any 
such  districts,  shall  be  valid  and  conclusive,  when  approved  by  said  board  at  any 
meeting  regularly  convened. 

§  3  The  said  board  of  education  may,  in  its  discretion,  upon  the  written  appli- 
cation of  at  least  two-thirds  of  the  inhabitants,  entitled  by  law  to  vote  in  school 
district  meetings,  residing  withir-  the  territory  to  be  included  therein,  erect  sepa- 
rate school  districts,  and  from  time  to  time  regulate  and  alter  the  same,  in  either 
the  fifth,  sixth  and  seventh  wards  of  said  city.  Such  separate  school  districts, 
when  so  erected,  and  the  joint  districts  provided  for  in  the  second  section  of  this 
act,  when  so  formed,  shall  severally  enjoy  all  the  rights  and  privileges  and  be 
subject  to  all  the  duties  and  liabilities  of  school  districts  legally  formed  in  the 
several  towns  of  this  state,  and  shall  be  no  longer  under  the  care  and  government 
of  said  board  of  education. 

§  4.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  trustees  of  all  such  joint  and  separate  districts 
as  shall  be  formed  and  erected,  in  pursuance  of  this  act,  to  make  to  the  board  of 
education  of  said  city  all  the  reports  and  returns  which  are  or  may  be  by  law 
required  in  the  several  towns  of  this  state  to  be  made  to  the  town  superintendents 
t.  e.eof.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  board  of  education  to  apportion  to  each 
of  the  parts  of  such  joint  districts  lying  within  said  city,  and  to  each  of  such 
separate  districts,  from  all  the  public  school  moneys  that  shall  thereafter  be 
apportioned  and  paid  to  the  city,  whether  the  same  shall  be  received  from  tl  e 
state  school  moneys  or  from  the  taxes  directed  by  law  to  he  levied  and  collected 
for  that  purpose,  the  just  proportion  of  such  moneys,  according  to  the  number 
of  children  residing  within  such  parts  of  said  joint  districts  as  shall  lie  within 
said  city  and  within  said  separate  districts  between  the  ages  of  five  and  sixteen 


UTICA.  465 

years,  inclusive,  making  the  whole  number  of  such  children  residing  within  the 
city  the  basis  for  such  apportionment,  as  the  same  shall  appear  from  the  last 
reports  thereof. 

§  5.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  board  of  supervisors  of  the  county  of  Rensse- 
laer, from  and  after  the  passage  of  this  act,  to  direct  that  all  the  moneys  levied 
and  collected  on  the  inhabitants  of  the  city  of  Troy  for  common  school  purposes, 
whether  the  same  shall  be  levied  and  collected  as  county  taxes  or  otherwise,  shall 
be  paid  over  by  the  receiver  of  taxes  for  said  city  to  the  chamberlain  thereof  for 
the  sole  use  and  benefit  of  the  free  public  schools  within  said  city,  and  it  shall  be 
the  duty  of  the  board  of  education  to  apply  all  such  moneys  to  the  support  of 
the  free  schools  of  said  city,  in  conformity  to  law. 


UTICA. 

[Laws  of  1842,  chap.  137,  as  amended  by  chap.  131  o/1844,  chap.  184,  title  10  of 
1848,  chap.  66  of  1850,  and  chap.  348  of  1854.] 

Section  1.  At  the  next  annual  election  for  city  officers  to  be  held  in  the  city 
of  Utica  there  shall  be  elected  six  commissioners  of  common  schools  for  the  said 
city  who  shall  be  elected  in  the  same  manner  as  justices  of  the  peace,  super- 
visors and  constables  are  elected  in  said  city  pursuant  to  the  act  incorporating 
said  city. 

§  2.  Whithin  ten  days  after  their  election,  the  persons  so  elected  shall  take  and 
subscribe  the  oath  of  office  prescribed  by  the  constitution,  and  file  the  same  with 
the  clerk  of  said  city ;  and  they  or  a  majority  of  them  shall  thereupon  meet  and 
cause  the  whole  number  of  commissioners  so  chosen  to  be  divided  into  three 
classes,  to  be  severally  numbered  first,  second  and  third.  The  term  of  office  of 
the  first  class  shall  expire  at  the  end  of  one  year,  of  the  second  class  at  the  end 
of  two  years,  and  of  the  third  class  at  the  end  of  three  years ;  but  each  class 
shall  continue  in  office  until  their  successors  are  elected  and  have  taken  the  oath 
of  office. 

§  3.  At  every  annual  election  for  city  officers  in  said  city  after  the  next,  there 
shall  in  like  manner  be  elected  two  commissioners  of  common  schools,  to  supply 
the  places  of  those  whose  term  of  office  is  about  to  expire  ;  they  shall  hold  their 
office  for  three  years,  and  until  their  successors  are  elected  and  have  taken  the 
oath  of  office.  The  term  of  office  of  all  commissioners  elected  pursuant  to  the 
provisions  of  this  act  shall  commence  on  the  first  Monday  after  the  first  Monday 
in  March  next  succeeding  their  election. 

§  4.  The  common  council  of  said  city  may  make  appointments  of  commis- 
sioners of  common  schools,  to  fill  vacancies  which  may  occur  from  any  cause 
other  than  the  expiration  of  the  term  of  office  of  the  person  elected.  The  com- 
missioners so  appointed  shall  hold  their  office  for  the  unexpired  term  of  those  to 
supply  whose  places  they  are  appointed. 

§  5.  Any  commissioner  of  common  schools  in  said  city  may  be  removed  from 
office  for  official  misconduct  by  the  common  council  thereof,  by  a  vote  of  two- 
thirds  of  the  members  thereof. 

§  6.  The  commissioners  of  common  schools  in  said  city  shall  constitute  a 
board  to  be  styled  the  "  Commissioners  of  Common  Schools  in  the  city  of  Utica," 
which  shall  be  a  corporate  body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred 
upon  them  by  virtue  of  this  act ;  a  majority  of  the  board  shall  form  a  quorum. 
At  their  first  meeting  after  each  annual  city  election  they  shall  elect  one  of  their 
number  chairman,  and  whenever  the  chairman  shall  be  absent  from  a  meeting 
of  the  board  they  may  appoint  a  chairman  pro  tempore ;  they  shall  also  elect  a 
clerk,  who  shall  hold  his  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board;  the  said  com- 
missioners shall  receive  no  compensation  for  their  services. 

§  7.  The  clerk  of  said  board  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  thereof, 
which  record,  or  a  transcript  therefrom  certified  by  the  chairman  and  clerk,  shall 

[Code.]  59 


466  UTICA. 

be  received  in  all  courts  as  prima  facie  evidence  of  the  facts  therein  set  forth; 
and  such  records,  and  all  books,  papers  and  accounts  of  the  said  board,  shall  at 
all  times  be  subject  to  the  inspection  of  the  common  council  and  of  any  com- 
mittee tliereof. 

§  8.  The  common  council  of  the  said  city  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be 
their  duty,  to  raise  from  time  to  time,  by  tax  upon  the  real  and  personal  estates 
in  said  city  which  shall  be  liable  to  taxation  for  the  ordinary  city  taxes  or  for 
town  or  county  charges,  such  sums  as  may  he  determined  and  certified  by  the 
said  board  of  commissioners  to  be  necessary  or  proper  for  any  or  all  of  the  follow- 
ing purposes: 

1.  To  purchase,  lease  or  improve  sites  for  school-houses; 

2.  To  build,  purchase,  lease,  enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses 
and  their  out-houses  and  appurtenances; 

3.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  books,  furni- 
ture and  appendages ; 

4.  To  procure  fuel  and  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  common  schools, 
and  the  expenses  of  the  district  library  of  said  city,  and  the  contingent  expenses 
of  said  board  of  commissioners,  including  the  salary  of  the  clerk  of  said  board, 
and  to  meet  any  deficiency  which  shall  occur  in  the  payment  of  the  wages  of 
teachers  of  the  said  schools,  after  applying  to  the  payment  thereof  the  school 
moneys  appropriated  and  provided  in  said  city  and  the  tuition  fees  which  shall  be 
collected  as  hereinafter  provided,  which  shall  be  in  addition  to  the  amount  of 
school  moneys  now  or  hereafter  appropriated  or  provided  by  law  for  common 
schools  in  said  city;  provided,  nevertheless,  that  such  tax  shall  not  be  laid 
oftener  than  once  in  each  year,  and  that  the  whole  amount  to  be  raised  shall  not 
in  any  one  year  exceed  the  sum  of  five  thousand  dollars. 

§  9.  The  common  council  shall  cause  the  amount  of  the  tax,  at  any  time  ordered 
to  be  raised  in  pursuance  of  the  last  section,  to  be  added  to  the  amount  which 
they  are  otherwise  authorized  by  law  to  raise  by  tax  in  said  city,  and  they  shall 
cause  the  same,  with  the  collectors'  fees  thereon,  to  be  assessed,  levied  and  col- 
lected at  the  same  time,  by  the  same  warrant  and  in  the  same  manner  with  the 
taxes  raised  for  city  expenses  under  and  by  virtue  of  the  forty-fourth  section  of 
the  act  to  incorporate  said  city. 

§  10.  All  moneys  to  be  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act,  and  all 
school  moneys  by  law  appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  city,  shall  be  paid  to 
the  treasurer  of  the  said  city,  who,  together  with  the  sureties  upon  his  official 
bond,  shall  be  accountable  therefor  in  the  same  manner  as  for  other  moneys  of 
the  said  city ;  the  said  treasuer  shall  also  be  liable  to  the  same  penalties  for  any 
official  misconduct  in  relation  to  the  said  moneys  as  for  any  similar  misconduct 
in  relation  to  the  other  moneys  of  the  city. 

§  11.  After  the  passage  of  this  act  the  treasurer  of  the  said  city  shall  not  pay 
out  any  moneys  in  his  hands,  received  by  the  said  city  either  as  school  moneys 
or  collected  or  received  by  virtue  of  any  of  the  provisions  of  this  act,  excepting 
upon  an  order  drawn  upon  him  and  signed  by  the  chairman  and  clerk  of  the  said 
board  of  commissioners ;  and  no  such  order  shall  be  drawn  except  by  virtue  of  a 
resolution  of  the  board. 

§  12.  The  said  board  may  cause  a  suit  or  suits  to  be  prosecuted  in  the  name 
of  the  city  of  Utica  upon  the  official  bond  of  the  treasurer,  or  of  any  collector  of 
the  said  city,  for  any  default,  delinquency  or  official  misconduct  in  relation  to  the 
collection,  safe  keeping  or  payment  of  any  moneys  in  this  act  mentioned. 

§  13.  The  said  board  shall  have  power,  and  it  shall  he  their  duty : 

1.  To  establish  and  organize  such  and  so  many  common  schools  in  said  city 
(including  the  common  and  free  schools  now  existing  therein)  as  they  shall  deem 
requisite  and  expedient,  and  to  alter  and  discontinue  the  same  ; 

2.  To  purchase  or  hire  school- houses  and  rooms  and  lots  or  sites  for  school- 
houses,  and  to  fence  and  improve  them  as  they  deem  proper; 

3.  Upon  such  lots  or  sites,  and  upon  any  sites  now  owned  by  said  city,  to  build, 
enlarge,  alter,  improve  and  repair  school-houses,  out-houses  and  appurtenances, 
as  they  may  deem  advisable ; 


UTICA.  407 

4.  To  purchase,  exchange,  improve  and  repair  school  apparatus,  hooks,  furni- 
ture and  appendages,  and  to  provide  fuel  for  the  schools,  and  defray  their  con- 
tingent expenses  and  the  expenses  of  the  district  library  ; 

5.  To  have  the  custody  and  safe  keeping  of  the  school-houses,  out-hou«cs, 
apparatus,  books,  furniture  and  appendages,  and  to  see  that  the  ordinances  of  the 
common  council  in  relation  thereto  be  observed ; 

0.  To  contract  with  and  employ  all  teachers  in  the  common  schools  and  at  their 
pleasure  to  remove  them ; 

7.  To  pay  the  wages  of  such  teachers  out  of  the  school  moneys  which  shall  be 
appropriated  and  provided  in  the  said  cty,  so  far  as  the  same  shall  be  sufficient, 
and  the  residue  thereof  from  the  tuition  fees  they  shall  be  authorized  to  collect 
or  receive,  as  herein  provided ;  and  in  case  the  said  school  moneys  and  tuition 
fees  shall  be  insufficient  to  pay  such  wages,  then  to  pay  the  deficiency  out  of  the 
moneys  to  be  raised  by  the  common  council  of  said  city,  in  pursuance  of  the 
eighth  section  of  this  act ; 

8.  To  fix  the  rate  of  tuition  fees  in  said  schools  at  a  sum  not  exceeding  two 
dollars  per  term,  which  shall  be  a  period  of  not  less  than  eleven  weeks,  and  to 
designate  a  person  or  persons  to  whom  the  same  may  be  paid  previous  to  issuing 
a  warrant  for  the  collection  thereof ;  and  to  exempt  from  the  payment  of  the  whole 
or  any  part  of  the  tuition  fees  such  person  as  they  may  deem  entitled  to  such 
exemption,  for  indigence  or  any  other  sufficient  cause,  and  cause  a  list  of  the 
persons  so  exempted,  with  the  extent  of  their  exemption,  to  be  kept  by  the  clerk 
of  the  board ; 

9.  To  defray  the  necessary  contingent  expenses  of  the  hoard,  including  an 
annual  salary  to  the  clerk,  which  shall  not  exceed  one  hundred  dollars,  provided 
that  the  account  of  such  expenses  shall  first  be  audited  and  allowed  by  the  com- 
mon council ; 

10.  After  the  end  of  each  school  term  to  make  out  a  rate  bill  containing  the 
name  of  each  person  liable  to  pay  tuition  fees,  who  shall  not  have  paid  them 
(  prior  to  the  making  out  of  such  rate  bill )  to  the  person  or  persons  designated 
by  the  board  for  that  purpose,  and  the  amount  for  which  such  person  is  liable, 
adding  thereto  a  sum  not  exceeding  five  cents  on  each  dollar  of  the  sum  due, 
for  collector's  fees,  and  to  annex  to  such  rate  bill  a  warrant  for  the  collection 
thereof ; 

11.  To  deliver  such  rate  bill,  with  the  warrant  annexed,  to  one  of  the  collectors 
of  taxes  of  said  city,  who  shall  execute  the  same  in  like  manner  and  with  like 
effect  with  the  other  warrants  for  the  collection  of  taxes  placed  in  his  hands ;  or, 
in  their  discretion,  to  deliver  the  same  to  a  collector  to  be  appointed  by  said  board 
of  commissioners,  who  shall,  if  required  by  said  board,  execute  to  said  commis- 
sioners in  their  corporate  capacity  a  bond,  with  one  or  more  surities,  to  be 
approved  by  said  commissioners  or  a  majorty  of  them,  which  bond,  as  to  its  penalty 
and  conditions,  shall  be  the  same  as  is  by  law  required  to  be  executed  by  the 
collectors  of  school  districts;  and  the  said  board  of  commissioners  shall  have 
the  same  power  and  authority,  in  regard  to  said  bond  and  the  collection  thereof, 
as  the  trustees  of  school  districts  have  by  law  in  regard  to  the  bonds  given  by 
collectors  of  school  districts ;  and  the  said  collector  shall  have  the  same  power 
in  the  execution  of  said  warrants,  that  the  collectors  of  taxes  of  said  city  have 
by  virtue  of  this  act ; 

12.  To  have  in  all  respects  the  superintendence,  supervision  and  management 
of  the  common  schools  in  said  city,  and  from  time  to  time  to  adopt,  alter,  modify 
and  repeal,  as  they  may  deem  expedient,  rules  and  regulations  for  their  organiza- 
tion, government  and  instruction,  for  the  reception  of  pupils  and  their  transfer 
from  one  school  to  another,  and  generally  for  the  promotion  of  good  order,  pros- 
perity and  public  utility ; 

13.  Whenever  in  the  opinion  of  the  board  it  may  be  advisable  to  sell  any  of 
the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  any  of  the  school  property  now  or  hereafter 
belonging  to  the  city,  to  report  the  same  to  the  common  council ; 

14.  To  prepare  and  report  to  the  common  council  such  ordinances  and  regula- 
tions as  may  be  necessary  or  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care  and 


468  UTICA. 

preservation  of  school-louses,  lots,  sites  and  appurtenances,  and  all  the  property 
belonging  to  the  city  connected  with  or  appertaining  to  the  schools,  and  to  sug- 
gest proper  penalties  for  the  violation  of  such  ordinances  and  regulations ;  and 
annually  to  determine  and  certify  to  the  said  common  council  the  sums  in  their 
opinion  necessary  or  proper  to  be  raised  under  the  eighth  section  of  this  act, 
specifying  the  sums  required  for  each  of  the  serveral  purposes  therein  mentioned ; 

15.  To  unite  with  the  commissioners  of  schools  of  any  adjoining  town,  and 
form,  regulate  and  alter  any  district  out  of  any  portion  of  the  said  city  and  such 
town,  whenever  they  shall  deem  it  necessary  and  proper  to  do  so;  in  which  case, 
so  far  as  such  district  or  districts  are  concerned,  and  said  board  shall,  during  the 
existence  of  such  districts,  have  the  same  powers  and  duties  which  the  commis- 
sioners of  schools  in  towns  have ; 

16.  Between  the  first  day  of  July  and  the  first  day  of  August,  in  each  year,  to 
make  and  transmit  to  the  county  clerk  a  report  in  writing,  bearing  date  the  first 
day  of  July  in  the  year  of  its  transmission,  and  stating: 

i.  The  whole  number  of  districts  separately  set  off  within  the  said  city,  in  pur- 
suance of  subdivision  fifteen  of  this  section ; 

ii.  An  account  and  description  of  all  the  common  schools  kept  in  said  city 
during  the  preceding  year,  and  the  time  they  have  severally  been  taught ; 

in.  The  number  of  children  taught  in  the  said  schools  respectively,  and  th© 
number  of  children  over  the  age  of  five  and  under  sixteen  [21]  years  residing  in 
the  city  on  the  first  day  of  January  of  that  year ; 

iv.  The  whole  amount  of  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  the  said 
city  during  the  preceding  year,  distinguishing  the  amount  received  from  the 
county  treasurer,  from  the  town  collector,  and  from  any  other  and  what  source ; 

v.  The  manner  in  which  such  moneys  have  been  expended,  and  whether  any 
and  what  part  remains  unexpended,  and  for  what  cause  ; 

vi.  The  amount  of  money  received  for  tuition  fees  during  the  year,  and  the 
amount  paid  for  teachers'  wages,  in  addition  to  the  public  moneys,  with  such  other 
information  as  the  Superintendent  of  Common  Schools  may  from  time  to  time 
require. 

§  14.  All  persons  collecting  or  receiving  tuition  fees,  pursuant  to  the  designation 
or  the  warrant  of  the  said  board,  shall  be  liable  for  all  moneys  thus  collected  or 
received  by  them,  in  the  same  manner  as  collectors  are  for  moneys  received  by 
them  for  taxes,  and  any  collector  of  the  said  city  and  his  sureties  shall  be  liable 
upon  his  official  bond  for  any  default,  delinquency,  neglect  or  misconduct,  in  the 
duties  with  which  he  may  be  charged  under  or  by  virtue  of  this  act,  in  the  same 
manner  and  with  the  like  effect  as  for  any  other  official  default,  delinquency,  neg- 
lect or  misconduct ;  and  such  collector  shall  also  be  liable  to  the  same  penalties 
for  any  such  official  misconduct  as  for  any  similar  misconduct  in  relation  to  any 
other  duties  of  his  office. 

§  15.  The  warrant  annexed  to  any  rate  bill,  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this 
act,  shall  be  under  the  hands  of  the  commissioners,  or  a  majority  of  them,  and 
shall  command  the  collector  to  collect  from  every  person  in  such  rate  bill  named 
the  sum  therein  set  opposite  his  name ;  and  in  case  any  person  so  named  shall  not 
pay  such  sum  on  demand,  to  levy  the  same,  together  with  the  fees  of  said  collector, 
by  distress  and  sale  of  goods  and  chattels  of  the  person  who  ought  to  pay  the 
same,  or  of  any  goods  and  chattels  in  his  possession,  wheresoever  the  same  may 
be  found  in  the  city  of  Utica,  and  to  make  return  of  such  warrant  to  the  treasurer 
of  said  city  within  thirty  days  after  the  delivery  thereof. 

§  16.  Such  warrants  shall  have  the  like  force  and  effect  as  warrants  issued  by 
the  boards  of  supervisors  to  the  collectors  of  towns  ;  and  the  collectors  of  the  said 
city  are  authorized  to  collect  the  amount  due  from  any  person  or  persons  in  the 
said  city  in  the  same  manner  and  with  the  same  power  that  collectors  of  a  school- 
district  have  for  the  collection  of  tax  or  rate  bills  issued  by  the  trustees  of 
school  districts. 

§  17.  The  board  of  commissioners  shall  possess  the  same  powers  which  the 
trustees  of  school  districts  have  for  the  collection  of  tuition  fees  which  shall  not 
be  collected  by  the  warrant  issued  by  them  with  rate  bills,  and  subject  to  the 


UTICA.  4G9 

6ame  regulations  ;  and  they  may,  in  like  manner  as  the  trustees  of  school  districts, 
correct  and  amend  errors  in  making  out  any  rate  bill,  and  refund  to  any  person 
any  sum  improperly  collected  in  consequence  of  such  error. 

§  18.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  said  board,  in  all  their  expenditures  and  con- 
tracts, to  have  reference  to  the  amount  of  moneys  which  will  be  subject  to  their 
order  during  the  then  current  year  for  the  particular  expenditures  in  question. 

§  19.  The  said  board  of  commissioners  shall  be  the  trustees  of  tlie  district 
library  in  said  city,  and  all  the  provisions  of  the  act  entitled  "  An  act  respecting 
the  school  district  libraries,"  passed  April  15,  1839,  and  all  other  laws  which  now 
are  or  may  hereafter  be  passed  relating  to  district  school  libraries,  shall  apply  to 
the  said  commissioners  in  the  same  manner  as  if  they  were  trustees  of  a  school 
district  comprehending  the  said  city ;  they  shall  also  be  vested  with  the  discretion 
as  to  the  disposition  of  the  moneys  appropriated  by  the  fourth  section  of  chapter 
two  hundred  and  thirty-seven  of  the  statute  of  eighteen  hundred  and  thirty- 
eight,  which  is  therein  conferred  upon  the  inhabitants  of  school  districts.  It 
shall  be  their  duty  to  provide  a  library  room  and  the  necessary  library  furniture, 
and  appoint  a  librarian  to  make  all  purchases  of  books  for  the  said  library,  and 
from  time  to  time  to  exchange  or  cause  to  be  repaired  damaged  books  belonging 
thereto;  they  may  also  sell  any  books  which  they  deem  useless,  or  of  improper 
character,  and  apply  the  proceeds  to  the  purchase  of  other  books  for  the  said 
library. 

§  106.  [Title  10,  chap.  184,  Laws  of  1849.]  The  board  of  commissioners  of 
common  schools  may,  from  the  moneys  received  by  them  for  the  school  district 
library,  defray  the  contingent  expenses  of  the  library  and  the  salary  of  the  libra- 
rian, and  apply  such  portion  of  it  as  they  may  deem  proper  to  the  payment  of 
teachers'  salaries. 

§  20.  It  shall  be  the  duty  of  said  board,  at  least  fifteen  days  before  the  annual 
election  for  city  officers  in  each  year,  to  prepare  and  report  to  the  common  coun- 
cil true  and  correct  statements  of  the  receipts  and  disbursements  of  moneys  under 
and  in  pursuance  of  the  provisions  of  this  act  during  the  preceding  year,  in 
which  account  shall  be  stated,  under  appropriate  heads  : 

1 .  The  moneys  raised  by  the  common  council  under  the  eighth  section  of  this 
act; 

2.  The  school  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer  of  the  city  from  the  county 
treasurer  and  the  collector  of  taxes  for  town  and  county  charges  in  said  city ; 

3.  The  moneys  received  for  tuition  fees; 

4.  All  other  moneys  received  by  the  treasurer,  subject  to  the  order  of  the  board, 
specifying  the  sources ; 

5.  The  manner  in  which  such  moneys  shall  have  been  expended,  specifying  the 
amount  paid  under  each  head  of  expenditure ; 

And  the  common  council  shall,  ten  days  before  the  said  election,  cause  the 
same  to  be  published,  with  the  statement  required  to  be  published  by  the  thirty- 
third  section  of  the  act  to  incorporate  the  said  city. 

§  21.  The  said  board  shall  be  subject  to  the  rules  and  regulations  from  time  to 
time  made  by  the  superintendent  of  common  schools,  so  far  as  the  same  may  be 
applicable  to  them,  and  not  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act. 

§  22.  The  common  council  of  said  city  shall  have  the  power,  and  it  shall  be 
their  duty,  to  pass  such  ordinances  and  regulations  as  the  said  board  of  commis- 
sioners may  report  as  necessary  and  proper  for  the  protection,  safe  keeping,  care 
and  preservation  of  the  school-houses,  lots,  sites  and  appurtenances,  and  all  the 
necessary  property  belonging  to  or  connected  with  the  schools  in  said  city,  and 
to  impose  proper  penalties  for  the  violation  thereof,  subject  to  the  restrictions  and 
limitations  contained  in  the  act  to  incorporate  the  said  city  ;  and  all  such  penal- 
ties shall  be  collected  in  the  same  manner  that  the  penalties  for  violation  of  the 
city  ordinances  are  by  law  collected,  and  when  collected  shall  be  paid  to  the 
treasurer  of  the  city,  and  be  subject  to  the  order  of  the  board  of  commissioners, 
in  the  same  manner  as  other  moneys  raised  pursuant  to  the  provisions  of  this  act 

§  23.  Whenever  the  said  board"  shall  report  to  the  common  council  that  it ; 
advisable  to  sell  any  of  the  school-houses,  lots  or  sites,  or  any  of  the  school  pr 


470  UTICA. 

perty  now  or  hereafter  belonging  to  the  city,  it  shall  be  the  duty  of  the  common 
council  to  sell  the  same  without  unreasonable  delay,  and  upon  such  terms  as  the 
said  council  may  deem  advisable.  The  proceeds  of  all  such  sales  shall  be  paid 
to  the  treasurer  of  the  city,  and  shall  be  subject  to  the  order  of  the  said  board, 
to  be  expended  by  them  in  the  purchase,  leasing,  repairs  or  improvements  of 
other  school-houses,  lots,  school  furniture;  apparatus  or  appurtenances. 

§  24.  The  title  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  books,  apparatus  and 
appurtenances,  and  all  other  school  property  hereinbefore  in  this  act  mentioned, 
shall  be  vested  in  the  city  of  Utica;  and  the  same,  while  used  for  or  appropriated 
for  school  purposes,  shall  not  be  liable  to  be  levied  upon  or  sold  by  virtue  of  any 
warrant  or  execution,  nor  be  subject  to  taxation  or  assessment  for  any  purpose 
whatsoever;  and  the  said  city,  in  its  corporate  capacity,  shall  be  liable  to  take, 
hold  and  dispose  of  any  real  or  personal  estate  transferred  to  it  by  gift,  grant, 
bequest  or  devise,  for  the  use  of  common  schools  of  the  said  city,  whether 
the  same  shall  be  transferred  in  terms  directly  to  said  city  by  its  proper  style,  or 
by  any  other  designation  or  to  any  other  designation,  or  to  any  person  or  persons 
or  body,  for  the  use  of  said  schools. 

§  25.  All  former  acts  and  parts  of  acts  in  relation  to  common  and  free  schools 
in  the  said  city,  inconsistent  with  the  provisions  of  this  act,  are  hereby  repealed. 


[  Laws  of  1850,  chap.  66,  as  amended  by  chap.  258  of  1852  and  chap.  348  of  1854.] 

Section  1.  The  board  of  school  commissioners  of  the  city  of  Utica  shall 
annually  prepare  an  estimate  of  the  amount  of  money  to  be  raised  in  the  said  city 
for  the  payment  of  teachers'  wages  ( exclusive  of  the  money  now  required,  or  which 
may  hereafter  be  required  by  law  to  be  appropriated  or  apportioned  for  the  use 
of  common  schools  in  said  city  ),  and  present  the  same  to  the  common  council  of 
said  city,  and  said  common  council  shall  cause  the  same  to  be  levied  and  collected 
in  the  said  city  in  the  same  manner  as  other  city  taxes  are  levied  and  collected; 
but  the  sum  to  be  raised  by  virtue  of  this  section  shall  not  in  any  year  exceed 
twice  the  sum  appropriated  or  apportioned  to  the  city  by  virtue  of  the  present  or 
any  future  general  law  in  reference  to  common  schools. 

§  2.  The  said  board  of  commissioners  shall  appoint  a  superintendent  of  common 
schools  for  the  city,  to  hold  his  office  during  the  pleasure  of  the  board,  and  to 
perform  such  duties  in  the  care  and  oversight  of  the  schools  in  the  city  as  it 
may  charge  him  with.  He  shall  be  paid  such  compensation  for  his  services  as 
the  board  shall  from  time  to  time  determine,  which  shall  be  audited  and  allowed 
as  other  town  charges  are  in  the  said  city. 


[Laws  of  1853,  chap.  272.] 

Section  1.  After  the  passage  of  this  act,  the  commissioners  of  common  schools 
in  the  city  of  Utica,  for  the  time  being,  shall  be  the  trustees  of  the  Utica  academy, 
and  possess  the  powers  and  perforin  the  duties  which  the  present  board  of  trus- 
tees thereof  possess  and  are  charged  with. 

§  2.  The  said  academy  shall  be  one  of  the  common  schools  of  the  said  city  of 
Utica,  but  shall  continue  subject  to  the  visitation  of  the  regents  of  the  university, 
and  entitled  to  all  the  rights  and  privileges  which  it  has  hitherto  possessed. 

§  3.  A  majority  of  the  board  of  trustees  shall  constitute  a  quorum  to  transact 
business. 


WATERLOO— WEST  FARMS.  471 

WATERLOO. 

[Laws  of  1853,  chap.  151.  ] 

This  act  makes  the  same  provisions  in  tenor  and  effect  for  districts  Nos.  1  and 
15,  respectively,  in  the  village  of  Waterloo,  as  those  of  the  act  on  page  375,  ante, 
in  respect  to  districts  Nos.  2,  3,  5  and  7  in  Castleton. 

[  Laws  of  1855,  cliap.  238.  ] 

Section  1.  The  trustees  of  school  district  number  one,  in  the  town  of  Waterloo, 
in  the  county  of  Seneca,  and  their  successors  in  office,  are  hereby  created  a  body 
corporate,  by  the  name  of  the  "Trustees  of  Waterloo  union  school,"  and  em- 
powered to  establish  and  organize  a  classical  school  in  said  district  and  in  the 
village  of  Waterloo,  which  school  shall  be  subject  to  the  visitation  of  the  regents  of 
the  university  of  this  state,  and  to  all  laws  and  regulations  applicable  to  the  incor- 
porated academies  thereof,  and  shall  be  entitled  to  all  the  privileges  of  such 
academies,  and  share  in  the  distribution  of  the  moneys  of  the  literature  fund  of 
this  state  as  the  academies  thereof;  and  said  trustees  shall  have  authority  to 
make  regulations  respecting  the  attendance  of  the  children  of  the  said  district  in 
the  school-houses  thereof,  the  transfer  of  them  from  one  room  or  school-house  to 
another,  the  instruction  and  studies  to  be  given  and  pursued  in  said  schools ; 
provided,  however,  that  this  act  shall  not  affect  the  rights  and  duties  of  said 
trustees  and  district  under  the  statutes  of  this  state  relating  to  common  schools, 
or  under  any  special  act  relating  to  said  district  number  one. 


WEST  FARMS. 

[  Laws  of  1853,  chap.  365.  ] 

Section  1.  School  district  number  one,  in  the  town  of  West  Farms,  shall  form  a 
permanent  school  district,  and  shall  not  be  subject  to  alteration  by  the  town 
superintendent  of  common  schools  for  the  town  in  which  said  district  is  situated. 
.  §  2.  The  said  district  shall  be  under  the  direction  of  a  board,  to  be  styled  the 
board  of  education  of  school  district  number  one,  town  of  West  Farms,  which 
shall  be  a  corporate  body  in  relation  to  all  the  powers  and  duties  conferred  upon 
them  by  this  act,  and  shall  possess  the  general  powers  and  be  subject  to  the 
liabilities  and  restrictions  imposed  by  the  eighteenth  chapter  of  the  first  part  of 
the  Revised  Statutes.  They  shall  possess  all  the  powers  and  be  subject  to  all  the 
duties  in  respect  to  said  district  that  the  trustees  of  common  schools  now  possess 
or  are  subject  to,  together  with  such  other  powers  and  duties  as  are  given  and 
imposed  by  this  act.  The  said  board  shall  consist  of  nine  members,  a  majority 
of  whom  shall  constitute  a  quorum  for  the  transaction  of  business.  James  Woods, 
Benjamin  Harrison,  F.  W.  Gilley,  William  H.  Merritt,  L.  K.  Osborne,  Stephen 
Angell,  Harry  M.  Morris,  Myron  Finch,  Gouverneur  Morris,  shall  compose  the 
first  board  of  education,  and  shall  hold  their  office  from  one  to  three  years,  that 
is  to  say,  three  shall  go  out  in  each  year,  and  in  the  order  in  which  their  names 
stand  recorded  in  this  section.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  meet  for  the 
transaction  of  business  as  often  as  once  in  each  month,  and  may  adjourn  for  any 
shorter  time.  Special  meetings  may  be  called  by  the  president,  or,  in  his  absence 
or  inability  to  act,  by  the  secretary  or  any  other  member  of  the  board,  as  often 
as  necessary,  by  giving  personal  notice  to  each  member  thereof,  or  causing  a 
written  or  printed  notice  to  be  left  at  his  last  place  of  residence  at  least  twenty- 
four  hours  before  the  hour  of  meeting.  And  if  any  member  of  the  said  board 
shall  refuse  or  neglect  to  attend  any  three  successive  stated  meetings  of  the  board, 


472  WEST  FARMS. 

and  if  no  satisfactory  cause  of  his  non-attendance  be  shown,  the  board  may 
declare  his  office  vacant.  No  member  of  said  board  shall  receive  any  pay  or 
compensation  for  his  services.  It  shall  not  be  lawful  for  any  member  of  said 
board  to  become  a  contractor  for  building,  or  making  any  improvement  or  repairs 
authorized  by  this  act,  or  be  in  any  manner,  directly  or  indirectly,  interested  either 
as  principal,  partner  or  surety  in  any  such  contract.  All  contracts  made  in  vio- 
lation of  this  provision  shall  be  absolutely  void,  and  the  person  so  violating  shall 
forfeit  the  sum  of  five  hundred  dollars,  to  be  prosecuted  for  and  received  and 
used  by  said  board  for  school  purposes. 

§  3.  There  shall  be  elected,  at  each  annual  district  meeting,  three  members  of 
said  board  of  education,  who  shall  hold  office  for  three  years.  There  shall  also 
be  elected  at  the  same  time  one  collector,  to  hold  office  for  one  year,  and  also 
three  persons  as  inspectors  of  election  for  the  ensuing  year,  all  of  whom  shall  be 
citizens,  and  taxable  inhabitants  of  the  district ;  said  election  shall  be  by  ballot ; 
notice  thereof  shall  be  given  two  weeks  previous,  by  the  board  of  education,  in 
any  two  local  newspapers  having  the  largest  circulation.  The  election  shall  be 
held  and  conducted,  the  votes  shall  be  canvassed,  and  the  result  of  the  election 
shall  be  determined  in  the  same  manner  as  for  town  officers. 

§  4.  The  collector  shall  collect  and  pay  over  the  school  moneys,  assessed  upon  said 
district,  to  the  treasurer  of  the  board  of  education ;  he  shall  possess  all  the  powers 
and  be  subject  to  all  the  duties  of  a  town  collector,  and  shall,  within  ten  days 
after  receiving  notice  of  his  election,  execute  and  deliver  to  the  said  board  of 
education  a  bond,  in  such  penalty  and  with  such  sureties  as  the  said  board  may 
require,  conditioned  for  the  faithful  discharge  of  his  duties ;  in  case  said  bond 
shall  not  be  given  within  ten  days  after  receiving  such  notice,  such  office  shall 
become  vacated,  and  said  board  may  make  appointment  to  supply  such  vacancy. 

§  5.  The  said  board  of  education  shall,  at  their  first  annual  meeting,  choose 
one  of  their  number  for  president,  one  for  secretary  and  one  for  treasurer,  who 
shall  hold  office  for  one  year.  In  the  absence  of  either  of  such  officers  at  any 
regular  meeting  of  the  board,  a  president  or  secretary  may  be  appointed  for  the 
time  being,  and  election  for  said  officers  shall  be  held  thereafter  on  the  same  day 
of  the  same  week  of  the  same  month  in  which  the  first  election  was  held.  If  from 
any  cause  the  election  shall  not  take  place  on  the  day  appointed  it  shall  be  held 
within  one  week  thereafter ;  until  such  election  the  old  officers  shall  continue  to 
perform  their  respective  functions.  The  treasurer  shall,  within  ten  days  after 
receiving  notice  of  his  appointment,  execute  and  deliver  to  the  said  board  of 
education  a  bond  in  such  penalty  and  with  such  sureties  as  they  may  require; 
in  case  such  bond  shall  not  be  given  within  ten  days  after  receiving  such  notice, 
such  office  shall  thereby  become  vacated,  and  said  board  may  make  an  appoint- 
ment to  supply  such  vacancy.  Said  board  may  appoint  a  clerk,  whose  compen- 
sation shall  be  fixed  by  them,  and  who  shall  hold  office  for  one  year.  The  said 
clerk  shall  keep  a  record  of  the  proceedings  of  the  board,  and  perform  such  other 
duties  as  the  board  may  prescribe.  The  said  record,  or  a  transcript  thereof  certi- 
fied by  the  president  and  clerk,  shall  be  received  in  all  courts  as  prima  facie 
evidence  of  the  facts  therein  set  forth. 

§  6.  The  said  board  of  education  shall  call  an  annual  district  meeting  on  the 
first  Monday  in  June,  and  shall  submit  thereto  a  full  report,  in  writing,  of  their 
doings  as  such  board,  and  shall  state  therein  the  number  and  condition  of  the 
schools  in  said  district  under  their  charge,  and  the  number  of  scholars  attending 
the  same,  the  studies  pursued,  the  amount  of  moneys  received  from  the  state  and 
from  other  sources,  as  well  as  the  amount  raised  in  the  district  for  school  pur- 
poses, the  expenditures  of  the  same,  and  all  the  particulars,  in  detail,  relating  to 
the  schools  in  said  district,  which  report  shall,  immediately  after  it  is  made,  be 
printed  in  two  newspapers  published  in  the  district  for  two  weeks  consecutively. 

§  7.  The  said  board  of  education  are  hereby  authorized  and  directed  to  levy 
and  collect  by  tax  in  each  year,  upon  all  the  taxable  property  in  said  district, 
such  sum  as  may  be  necessary,  not  exceeding  in  amount  one-half  of  one  per  cent 
on  the  value  of  such  taxable  property,  as  the  same  shall  be  assessed  by  the  asses- 
sors of  the  town,  as  taken  from  their  last  assessment  roll,  which  sum  shall  be 


WEST  FARMS.  473 

applied  to  the  necessary  and  contingent  expenses  of  the  schools  and  said  district ; 
and  when,  in  the  opinion  of  the  said  board,  it  becomes  necessary  to  build  an 
additional  school-house  or  houses  in  the  district,  or  to  enlarge  those  already 
built,  they  shall  give  public  notice,  of  at  least  fifteen  days,  of  the  site  or  sites 
selected  for  such  purposes,  and  of  the  amounts  required  for  the  purchase  thereof, 
inclusive  of  the  building  and  of  the  cost  of  the  furniture,  &c,  and  at  the  same 
time  call  a  district  meeting,  to  which  the  same  is  to  be  submitted  ;  and  unless  a 
majority  of  all  the  tax  payers  of  the  district  present  shall  oppose  the  proposed 
plan,  then  the  said  board  may  proceed  to  raise  the  means  by  levying  a  tax,  as 
above,  not  exceeding  in  amount  one-half  of  one  per  cent  on  the  value  of  the  tax- 
able property  in  the  district. 

§  8.  The  said  board  of  education  may  make  all  necessary  by-laws  for  their  own 
government.  "Vacancies  in  the  board,  occurring  by  resignation  or  any  other 
cause,  the  same  may  be  filled  by  the  board  until  the  next  annual  election,  when 
such  vacancies  shall  be  filled  in  the  same  manner  as  those  caused  by  expiration 
of  term  of  office.  The  title  of  the  school-houses,  sites,  lots,  furniture,  books, 
apparatus  and  appurtenances,  and  all  other  school  property  in  the  said  district, 
shall  be  and  the  same  hereby  is  vested  in  the  said  board  of  education ;  and  tho 
said  board,  in  its  corporate  capacity,  may  take,  hold  and  dispose  of  any  real  or 
personal  estate,  transferred  to  it  by  gift,  grant,  bequest  or  devise,  for  the  use  of 
the  common  schools  in  the  said  district.  They  shall  have  and  possess  'within  the 
said  district  all  the  rights,  powers  and  authority  of  town  superintendent  of  com- 
mon schools.  They  shall  have  the  entire  control  and  management  of  all  the 
common  schools  within  the  said  district,  and  all  the  property  belonging  to  the 
same.  They  shall  require  one  of  the  members  of  the  said  board  to  visit  each 
school  in  said  district  at  least  once  in  each  week,  to  render  such  assistance  to  the 
teachers  and  advice  to  the  pupils  as  may  be  necessary,  and  to  see  that  the  regu- 
lations are  rigidly  adhered  to.  Said  board  shall  have  power  to  make  all  war- 
rants, for  the  collection  of  the  taxes  to  be  raised  by  them,  returnable  at  sixty  or 
ninety  days,  in  their  discretion,  and  to  renew  the  same  whenever  it  shall  become 
necessary. 

§  9.  All  moneys  to  be  received  by  virtue  of  this  act,  and  all  moneys  by  law 
appropriated  to  or  provided  for  said  district,  shall  be  paid  to  the  treasurer  of  said 
board,  who,  together  with  the  sureties  upon  his  official  bond,  shall  be  accountable 
to  said  board  of  education.  Said  treasurer  shall  not  pay  out  any  of  such  money, 
except  by  resolution  of  said  board  and  upon  an  order  drawn  by  the  president,  and 
certified  by  the  secretary  to  be  so  drawn  in  pursuance  of  such  resolution. 

§  10.  The  trustees  of  the  town  of  West  Farms  shall  pay  over  to  the  treasurer 
of  the  board  of  education  the  proportion  of  the  school  fund  belonging  to  the  town 
of  West  Farms  to  which  the  said  district  number  one  shall  or  may  be  entitled, 
together  with  the  interest  thereon,  to  be  used  by  such  board  of  education  for 
school  purposes. 

§  11.  The  town  superintendent  of  West  Farms,  the  trustees  and  collector  of 
district  number  one  of  said  town,  shall  pay  over  to  the  treasurer  of  the  board 
of  education  all  moneys  belonging  to  said  district  or  to  which  said  district  may 
be  entitled  for  school  purposes. 

§  12.  The  board  of  education  shall  have  control  and  charge  of  the  district  school 
library  in  said  district.  They  may  employ  a  librarian  and  assistants,  make  such 
additions  to  the  library  and  such  regulations  therefor  as  they  shall  deem  necessary. 

§  13.  The  said  board  of  education  may  call  special  meetings  of  said  district 
whenever  they  may  deem  it  necessary ;  they  shall  give  notice  of  the  same  by 
posting  up  a  written  or  printed  notice  thereof  in  at  least  five  public  places  in  said 
district,  and  by  publishing  the  same  in  two  newspapers  published  in  said  district 
at  least  two  weeks  previous  to  the  time  fixed  for  such  meeting,  which  notice 
shall  state  the  time  and  place  of  such  meeting  and  the  purpose  for  which  the 
same  is  called  ;  and  no  business  shall  be  transacted  at  any  such  special  meeting 
except  that  stated  in  the  notice  calling  the  same. 

§  14.  All  laws  and  parts  of  laws  inconsistent  with  this  act  are  hereby  repealed, 
so  far  as  relates  to  district  number  one,  in  the  town  of  West  Farms  aforesaid. 

[Code.J  60 


AH  WILLIAMSVILLE. 

WILLIAMSVILLE. 

[  Laws  of  1846,  chap.  119.  ] 

Section  1.  The  trustees  of  the  school  district  at  the  village  of  Williamsville,  in 
the  town  of  Amherst  and  county  of  Erie,  are  herehy  authorized,  if  the  inhabi- 
tants of  said  district  shall  at  any  regular  school  district  meeting  so  direct,  to 
make  thereafter,  and  until  the  said  inhabitants  shall  in  like  manner  otherwise 
direct,  separate  and  distinct  rate  bills  for  the  payment  of  the  wages  of  the 
teachers  in  the  primary  and  higher  department  of  the  schools  kept  in  the  said 
district ;  in  such  manner  to  collect,  on  account  of  scholars  attending  each  depart- 
ment, such  balances  as  may  be  justly  due  for  the  wages  of  the  teacher  or  teachers 
in  that  department,  after  the  application  to  that  purpose  of  such  share  of  the 
public  moneys  as  shall  be  apportioned  to  each  department  by  such  trustees,  by 
giving  to  each  such  proportion  of  the  whole  sum  applicable  to  the  payment  of 
teachers'  wages  in  both  departments  as  the  number  of  scholars  who  shall  have 
attended  such  department  during  the  time  for  which  such  rate  bill  is  to  be  made 
shall  bear  to  the  whole  number  of  scholars  attending  both  of  such  departments 
during  the  same  period. 


INDEX. 


ALBANY :  Paob. 

School  laws, 361 

ALIENS: 

When  may  hold  office 17 

When  qualified  to  vote, 81,  209 


ANNUAL  MEETING:  

Time  of, 3,  20,  103,  204 

Elections  at, 59,  218 

Any  business  legal  at 63,  214 

Surprise,  good  cause  for  ordering  new  meeting, 64,     75 

Noticed  for  tenth  and  adjourned  to  eleventh,  held  to  he  legal, 94 

Estimates  of  expenses  must  be  submitted  item  by  item, 94,  225 

General  powers, 213 

ANNUAL  REPORTS  OF  TRUSTEES,  pages  301  to  317: 

Time  when  to  be  made, 301 

What  to  contain, 302 

Form  of  and  to  whom  made, 304 

Children  at  poor  house  and  asylums 306 

Enumeration  of  children 307 

Indian  children, 308 

Reports  for  joint  districts 312 

"       for  separate  neighborhood, 312 

Penalty  for  false  reports 313 

APPEALS,  pages  317  to  324: 

Jurisdiction  of  school  department,   12,  43,  72 

Operates  as  stay  of  proceedings, 70 

Letters,  and  ex  parte  applications, 321 

Rules  respecting  appeals, , 322 

APPORTIONMENT  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS: 

State  tax, 120 

Common  school  fund 120 

United  States  deposit  fund, ' 120 

School  moneys,  how  to  be  expended -, . .  121 

Library  money, 121 

Salaries  of  school  commissioners 122 


476  INDEX. 

Pass. 

Mode  of  one-third  apportionment  to  districts, 122 

Districts  entitled  to  draw  money, 124 

Districts,  number  to  be  enumerated 125 

Two-third  apportionment  by  population 127 

Defective  census,  how  supplied, 137 

Clerks  of  supervisors  to  report  to  State  Supt.  the  county  valuations,  . . .  137 

ARBITRATION : 

Claims  may  be  settled  by, » 22,  246 

ASSESSMENT : 

Notice,  when  required, 17,  44,  73,  284 

Non-resident  land,  roll  guide  to  valuation,  not  to  liability, 93 

See  title  "  tax." 

ASSESSMENT  ROLL: 

When  deemed  complete 104 

Valuations,  how  ascertained, 282 

ASSESSMENT  AND  COLLECTION  OF  TAXES,  pages  267  to  301 : 

Real  estate, 267 

Personal  property, 268 

Non-residents,  debts  due  to, 271 

Land,  real  estate  and  real  property, 268 

Property  of  temporary  sojourners, 268 

Property  exempt, 269 

Rents  reserved, 270 

Land  of  non-residents, 272,  276 

Land  worked  by  contract, 273 

Land  worked  by  agent, 275 

Tenant  at  will, 276 

Return  of  land  for  unpaid  taxes 277 

Certificate  of  trustees, 278 

Board  of  supervisors, 279,  280 

County  treasurer, 279 

Owner  of  land  may  pay, 280 

Land  in  two  or  more  towns, 281 

Certificate  of  equalization, 281 

Valuations,  how  ascertained,   282 

Reduction,  when  to  be  allowed, 284 

Claim  of  reduction, 286 

Exemption  from  tax  for  building  house, 287 

Tax  list,  when  to  be  made  out, 287 

Form  of  tax  list, 289 

Warrant  to  collector, 290 

Delivery  of  warrant, 291 

Suits  against  collector, 294 

Levy  and  collection, 296 

Renewal  of  warrant, 298,  300 

AUBURN: 

School  laws, 363 

BAIL: 

Of  collector,  cannot  be  released, 22 


INDEX.  477 

Paob. 
BLIND : 

Selection  of  pupils, 116 

BOARD  OF  TEACHERS: 

How  to  be  provided  for, 3,  248 

BOARDS  OF  SUPERVISORS: 

State  tax, 120 

Clerk  to  transmit  valuation  to  superintendent, 137 

Salaries  of  school  commissioners, 183 

Auditing  accounts  of  commissioners, 183 

Unpaid  taxes, . 279 

Costs  and  charges  of  district  officers, 339 

BROOKLYN: 

School  laws, 368 

BUFFALO : 

School  laws, 371 

BUILDING  COMMITTEE : 

Agents  of  trustees, 11,  66,  246 

CAMILLUS  AND  GEDDES: 

School  district  No.  1, 373 

CANANDAIGUA : 

Schools  in  village, 373 

CASTLETON  : 

Districts  2,  3,  5  and  7 375 

CASTLETON  AND  SOUTHFIELD: 

District  No.  1 , 373 

CERTIFICATE : 

Annulled  for  cruelty 18,     35 

Notice  of  intention  to  annul, 24,  172 

Annulling  of,  ends  contract  to  teach, 36 

Examination  for, 97 

Forms, , 168 

Annulling, 171 

CHAIRMAN  OF  MEETING: 

His  right  to  vote, 68,  216 

CHARITABLE  INSTITUTIONS : 

Selection  of  pupils 6,  115 

CHILDREN  : 

Enumeration  of, 16,23,38,306,  307 

School  age  of, 209 


478  INDEX. 

Paqb. 

Non-resident, 310 

Colored,  schools  for 343 

CLERK : 

Elected  trustee,  vacates  clerkship, 5 

Notice  to  call  meeting  may  be  verbal, 43 

Cannot  employ  another  to  give  notices, 43 

Powers  and  duties, 240 

CLERK  OF  SUPERVISORS : 

Transmit  valuation  to  State  Superintendent, 137 

CLYDE  HIGH  SCHOOL: 

Schools  in  Galen, 376 

COHOES: 

Schools  in, , 377 

COLLECTOR : 

Must  obey  warrant ;  neglect  finable  and  bail  cannot  be  released 22 

Delivery  of  warrant  to, 291 

Fees, 291 

Penalty  for  neglect, 293 

Return  of  collector, 293 

Bond,  form  of, : 295 

Execution  of  warrant, 294 

Force  of  warrant, 293 

COMMISSIONERS : 

Cannot  declare  void  proceedings  of  predecessors, 1 

Consent  to  additional  site, 103 

Consent  to  raise  tax  over  $400, 12,  229 

General  duties, 156  to  179 

See  title  "  School  Commissioners." 

COMMON  SCHOOLS: 

Free  to  whom, 310 

COMMON  SCHOOL  FUND: 

Income, 120 

CONSOLIDATION  OF  DISTRICTS: 

Rules  to  govern, . .    57f    58 

CONTINGENT  EXPENSES: 

Tax  for  illegal 3,  225 

COSTS: 

When  tax  may  be  raised  to  pay, 23,  339 

Under  chapter  214,  Laws  of  1847, 43,     72 


INDEX.  479 

COUNTY  TREASURER:  ****" 

Not  entitled  to  per  centage, 9 

When  to  apply  for  school  moneys, 141 

Notice  to  supervisors, 141 

Commission  of  one  per  cent, 142 

To  pay  unpaid  taxes, 279 

DEAF  AND  DUMB: 

Selection  of  pupils, 115 

DISMISSAL  FROM  SCHOOL: 

On  what  grounds, 3,  311 

DISTRIBUTION  OF  SCHOOL  MONEYS: 

School  moneys  to  be  paid  into  state  treasury, 138 

How  transferred, 138 

How  drawn  from  the  treasury, 139 

When  to  be  drawn, 139 

For  what  cause  to  be  withheld, 133,  140 

County  treasurer  to  draw  for 141 

Notice  to  supervisors  of  towns, 141 

Bond  to  be  taken  from  supervisors, 142 

DISTRICT,  DIVISION  OF  : 

Effect  upon  officers, 5 

Size  of  new  districts, 57 

Alteration  of, 98,  194 

(See  titles  "School  District"  and  "Meetings." 

DISTRICT  MEETINGS  AND  DISTRICT  OFFICERS,  pages  199  to  239 : 

First  meeting  of  new  district, ...   199 

Notice  of, 200 

Notice,  how  served, 202 

Penalty  for  neglect  to  serve  notice, 203 

Notice,  what  to  contain, 204 

Annual  meetings, 204 

Special  meetings; 206 

Residence  denned, 207 

Voters  at  district  meetings, 209 

Penalty  for  illegal  voting, 212 

General  powers  of  district  meeting, 213 

Challenge  of  votes, 214 

Appointment  of  chairman 265 

Choice  of  officers, 211 

Designation  of  site, 218,  228 

Levying  taxes, 221,  234 

Alteration  and  repeal  of  proceedings, 225 

Book  of  records 227 

Tax  for  more  than  8400, 229 

Tax  by  instalments, 231 

Change  of  site 232 

Sale  of  old  site, 233 

Proceeds  of  sale,  how  applied,     234 

Deficiencies  on  tax  lists  and  rate  bills, 234 


480  INDEX. 

Pa«tt. 

Tax  of  $10  for  library, 285 

Library  money  for  purchase  of  books, 236 

Classification  and  term  of  office  of  trustees, 236 

Term  of  office  under  appointment, , . .  237 

Vacancies  in  office,  how  filled, 105  238 

Penalty  for  refusing  or  neglecting  to  serve, '  239 

Resignations,  to  whom  made, 239 

EASTCHESTER: 

District  No.  4, 381 

ELECTION  OF  OFFICERS  : 

Cannot  be  rescinded  by  adjourned  meeting 1,  16 

When  set  aside, .  #     16 

Minor  elected,  how  displaced, 45 

Person  elected,  cannot  be  removed  on  a  collateral  issue, 45,     74 

At  adjourned  meeting,  valid, 102 

Choice  of  officers, 216 

ENUMERATION  OF  CHILDREN: 

Of  temporary  residents. 16,     38 

Boarders .' 23 1  308 

Of  residents, 306 

Indians, ...............  308 

EXEMPTIONS: 

Duty  of  trustees, 31      69 

From  tax  to  build  school-house, 40,  287 

Ministers  exempt  from  tax. 62    274 

Must  be  collected  by  tax, 105 

Indigent  persons, 252 

FLUSHING: 

District  No.  5, 384 

FORMATION  AND  ALTERATION  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS,  pages  185  to  199 

General  rules, 1 85 

Form  of  order, 186 

Association  of  supervisor  and  town  clerk, 188 

Notice  to  trustees, 190 

Joint  districts, 191    194 

Orders,  when  to  take  effect .'  193 

Consolidation, 195 

Moneys  of  annulled  districts 197 

Collection  of  tax  lists  or  rate  bills  of  annulled  and  dissolved  districts, . . .   198 

FORMS : 

Notice  of  application  to  remove  officer, 112 

Apportionment  for  teachers'  wages, 136 

Certificate  of  apportionment  to  supervisor, 136 

Bond  to  treasurers  for  towns, 143 

Account  of  supervisors, 148 

Taking  and  reporting  testimony, 183 

Order  for  formation  of  district, 186 


INDEX.  481 

Pace. 

Notice  to  trustees, 190 

Joint  districts, 191  194 

Notice  of  first  meeting 200 

Contract  with  teacher, , .  249 

Order  upon  supervisor  for  teachers'  wages, 251 

Certificate  of  exemptions,. .  .* 253 

Rate  bill  and  warrant, 257 

Teacher's  list  of  daily  attendance, 263 

List  for  term  attendance, 264 

Abstract  for  the  year, 265 

Return  of  land  for  unpaid  taxes 277 

Certificate  of  trustees  to  treasurer, 279 

Treasurer  to  pay  unpaid  taxes, 279 

Certificate  of  equalization  in  joint  districts, 281 

Notice  of  completion  of  tax  list, 285 

Tax  list 289 

Warrant  to  collector, 290 

Return  of  collector, . . . . 293 

Bond  of  collector, 295 

Renewal  of  warrant 298,  300 

Annual  report  of  trustees, 304 

Order  of  board  of  supervisors  to  levy  tax  for  costs  and  charges  of  trustees.  342 

Call  for  meeting  to  form  union  free  school, 348 

Vouchers  of  supervisor, 149 

Certificates  of  teachers, 168 

FORT  COVINGTON: 

Schools  in  districts  1  and  2, 386 

FUEL : 

How  provided, 260 

GAMBLING: 

Fines  for,  a  part  of  school  money, 346 

GEDDES : 

District  No.  1, 373 

GLENS  FALLS: 

Libraries  in  village, 388 

HUDSON: 

School  laws, 389 

ILLEGAL  VOTING . 

When  proceedings  will  be  set  aside  for, 2,  212,  228 

INDIAN  SCHOOLS: 

How  supported 114 

INDIGENT  PERSONS: 

Trustees  to  exempt, 31,  69 

Exempt  from  rate  bill, 252 

[Code.]  61 


482  INDEX. 

Paok. 

INSTALMENTS  : 

Tax  by, 67,  79,  99,  230 

JAMAICA  : 

Schools  in, 392 

JOINT  DISTRICTS: 

Alteration  and  dissolution  of, 8,  71,  191,  194 

Order  for  alteration  must  show  on  its  face  the  presence  of  proper  officers,     50 

LANSINGBURGH: 

Schools  in, 394 

LEASE  OF  SITE: 

On  what  terms, ".*•' . 3,     32 

Lease  when  authorized, 245 


LIBRARY  : 

American  books, 335 

What  part  may  be  sold, 6,  196 

Tax  of  $10  for  increase  of, 235 

Laws  and  rules  respecting, 325 

When  superintendent  may  select, 335 

LIBRARY  MONEY: 

When  to  be  expended, 41 

For  teachers'  wages, 41,  236 


LIBRARIAN: 

His  duties, 328 

LOCAL  LAWS  AND  REGULATIONS : 
Pages  361  to  Index. 

LODIAND  OWEGO: 

School  laws, 405 

LOCKPORT : 

School  laws, 394 

LYONS : 

School  laws, 402 

MEDINA : 

School  law,  402 

MEETINGS : 

Power  to  appropriate  public  moneys, 2 

How  many  voters  constitute  a  meeting, 6,  10,  20,  59 

When  trustees  bound  to  call, 9,  20,  77 

Power  to  raise  taxes, ..... 15,  19,  229 


INDEX.  483 

Page. 

Adjourned  meetings  cannot  displace  officers, 10,     10 

May  prescribe  terms  of  contract, 17,  246 

Annual,  when  to  be  held, 20,  21,  10:5,  201 

Cannot  excuse  trustees  for  neglect  to  report  and  pay  over  balance, J"> 

Cannot  employ  or  dismiss  teacher, 38 

Cannot  annul  district, 42 

Questions  of  order, 42,  00,  220 

Legal,  though  notice  to  call  verbal, 43 

Illegal  proceedings  set  aside  only  on  appeal,  55 

Notice  of  object  of  annual  meeting  not  necessary, 03,  103 

Surprise,  cause  for  setting  aside  proceedings, 64,     75 

Change  of  site  by, 05,  232 

Legal  voters  at 07,  08,  209 

Chairman's  right  to  vote, 08 

Special,  object  must  be  stated, 80,  214 

Powers  of  district  meetings, 199,  239 

Annual  meetings, 103,  204 

Special  meetings, 200 

General  powers  of  meetings, 213 

Additional  site, 103,  228 

See  titles  "  Annual  Meetings"  and  "  District." 

MINISTERS  OF  GOSPEL: 

Exempt  from  tax, 62,  274 

MONTH: 

Twenty-six  days  being  specified,  teacher  allowed  Saturday  afternoon  or 
alternate  Saturdays,  month's  work, 37,  125 

MORTGAGE : 

Money  due  on,  whom  taxable, 39 

MOTIONS : 

Chairman  must  put, 42,  215 

NEWBURGH : 

School  laws, 405 

NEW  DISTRICT: 

Officers  of, 5,  199 

NEWTOWN : 

School  laws, 409 

NEW-YORK: 

School  laws 411 

NON-RESIDENT  CHILDREN: 

Terms  of  admission  to  school, 1,  10,  50,  100 

Tuition  of, 45,  95,  255 

NOTICES  OF  ALTERATION: 

On  whom  to  be  served, 1,  2,  188 

Must  be  given  before  order  can  take  effect, 8,  193 


484  INDEX. 

Fjloe. 
NOTICE  OF  MEETING: 

Verbal,  sufficient, 2,  43 

Must  be  given  by  clerk  himself, 43,  240 

Twenty  days'  notice  of  new  valuation, 44,  73,  285 

Object  of  annual  meeting  need  not  be  specified, 63 

Due  notice  presumed, 95 

Annual  meeting, 200 

Trustees  to  order  notices, 244 

OFFICERS  OF  SCHOOL  DISTRICTS: 

Acts  regular  till  appealed  from, 46 

Removal  of,  for  cause, 58,  62,  112 

Right  to  hold  office  will  not  be  inquired  into  collaterally, 45,    74 

Choice  of...... 216 

OLD  SCHOOL-HOUSE: 

Avails  to  be  applied  to  purchase  new  house  and  site, 30 

ORDER : 

Void  in  part  and  valid  in  part, 8 

For  alteration,  when  to  take  effect, 8,  193 

Unrecorded,  good  after  five  years, 79 

Order  to  draw  money  by  two  trustees, 88 

OSWEGO : 

School  laws, 427 

OWEGO : 

School  laws, 405 

PENALTIES : 

For  neglect  or  violation  of  duty, ; . .  338 

For  disturbing  schools, 344 

For  gambling,  to  whom  paid, 346 

PHELPS : 

School  district  No.  8, 432 

PRAYERS: 

School  may  be  opened  with, 4 

POUGHKEEPSIE : 

School  laws, 433 

POWERS  AND  DUTIES: 

Of  State  Superintendent 109  to  119,  335 

Of  trustees, 241  to  267 

Of  district  meetings  and  officers, 199  to  239 

Of  school  commissioners, 156  to  179 

Supervisors,   146  to  154 

District  clerk, 240 

Town  clerk 184 

Collector,  ....   291  to  295 


INDEX.  485 

Taok. 

County  treasurer, 141 

Clerk  of  supervisors, 137 

PUBLIC   MONEY: 

"When  to  be  expended, 2,  78,  360 

To  whom  to  be  paid 3,  62,  82 

How  divided  between  towns 11,  17,  48,  52,  85 

Wages  for  winter  term 17 

In  reduction  of  rate  bill, 47 

Must  be  paid  over  to  officers  de  facto, 61 

Apportionment  of, 120  to  127,  360 

Distribution  of, 138  to  142 

PUBLIC  MONEY: 

When  forfeited,  may  be  restored  by  State  Superintendent 335 

Not  expended  by  district,  to  be  reapportioned, 360 

PULASKI: 

School  districts  Nos.  25,  27  and  30, 435 

PUNISHMENT : 

Cruelty  reprehended 18 

RATE  BILL: 

To  pay  teachers  for  different  terms, 48,  52,    78 

Legal  only  for  teachers'  wages  and  fuel, 49 

Exemptions, 31,     69 

Deficiencies, 234 

How  assessed, 254 

Property  exempt  from 211,  259 

REAL  ESTATE : 

Lying  in  two  districts,  how  taxable, 40 

Land  worked  by  contract, 100 

Possession  defined, 274 

Exemptions, 62,  287 

REAPPORTIONMENT  : 

Of  moneys  unexpended, 360 

RE-ELECTION  OF  TRUSTEE  RESIGNED : 

Cannot  be  done  against  his  will, 2 

REPEAL : 

General  repealing  section, 346 


REPORTS : 

Of  trustees,  children  of  temporary  residents, 16,  38 

What  children  to  be  enumerated, 23 

State  Superintendent's  annual  report, HO 

Of  trustees,  when  to  be  made, 301 

Of  school  commissioners, 180 

RESOLUTION : 

Effect  of  subsequent  resolution, 6,  226 


486  INDEX. 

Pack. 
RESIDENCE : 

How  gained  or  lost, 49,  91,  209 

What  constitutes, 207 

ROCHESTER: 

School  laws, 438 

SALEM  : 

School  laws, 443 

SCHENECTADY: 

School  laws, 448 

SCHOOL : 

When  trustees  bound  to  open, 5 

Branch  schools, 73 

For  colored  children, 343 

Disturbance  of, 344 

SCHOOL  COMMISSIONERS : 

Election 154  to  156 

Jurisdiction, 156 

General  duties. 156  to  179 

Visitation  of  schools, 158 

Advising  with  trustees, 159 

Advising  with  other  officers 160 

Resignations, 180 

Filling  of  vacancies, • 180 

Reports  to  State  Superintendent, 180 

Taking  affidavits  and  oaths, 181 

Taking  testimony, 181 

Forms, 182 

Salaries  and  accounts, 122,  144,  183 

City  superintendents, 184 

Formation  and  alteration  of  districts, 185 

Notice  to  trustees, 190 

Examination  of  teachers 165 

Certificates  of  teachers, 168 

Annulling  certificates, 171 

Notice  to  teacher  of  intention  to  annul 173 

Order  of  annulment, 173 

Teachers'  institutes,  175 

Not  to  be  trustee, 217 

SCHOOL  DISTRICT  : 

Cannot  borrow  money, 3 

Dissolution  is  not  alteration, 6 

Designation  of  site,   6 

Dissolution  of  joint  districts, 8 

Establishment  by  appeal  final, 9,  87 

Consent  to  alteration, 10 

Alteration, 19,71,74,  79,88,89,  91,  96 

Power  to  levy  taxes, 19 

For  uncollected  rate  bills, 19 

Size  of  new  districts, 57 

Consolidation  of, 57,  58 


INDEX.  48  V 

I'aoe. 

Must  be  formed  of  contiguous  territory, yO 

Formation  and  alteration  of, 185 

SCHOOL  DISTRICT  LIBRARIES : 

Rules  respecting 825 

SCIIOOL-IIOUSE : 

Joint  use,  when  allowable, , 3 

Stove  and  pipe,  appendages  to 61 

Purposes  for  which  it  is  to  be  used, 70,  246 

Repair  of, 259 

SENECA: 

School  laws 454 

SING  SING: 

School  laws, 456 

SITE  OF  SCHOOL-HOUSE: 

Designation  of, 6,  76,  103 

Title,  occupancy  good  notice  to  purchasers, 7 

Perpetual  lease  for,  will  not  be  permitted, 32 

Must  be  described  by  metes  and  bounds, 33 

"When  trustees  have  located  school-house,  department  will  not  interfere,  34 

Purchase  of  additional  grounds  not  a  change  of  site 34,  62 

Amount  of  purchase  money  not  limited,  and  certificate  not  necessary,. .  41 

Purchase  of  site, 54,  62,  98,  245 

Change  of,  by  what  vote, 65,  231 

Tax  for,  not  raised  by  instalments, 79 

Additional  site, 103 

Sale  of  old  site, 233 

Proceeds  of  sale,  how  applied, 234 

SOUTHFIELD: 

District  No.  1 373 

SPECIAL  MEETINGS: 

How  called,. . 9,  20,  77,  244 

STJTE  SUPERINTENDENT  OF  PUBLIC  INSTRUCTION: 

Powers  and  duties, 109  to  119 

His  election  and  term  of  office, 109 

Salary, 109 

Clerk  hire, 109 

Seal  of  office, 110 

Exemplification  and  copies  of  papers, 1 10 

Visitation  and  inspection  of  schools 110 

Annual  report, 110 

Regent  of  university,  ex  officio, Ill 

County  visitors, Ill 

State  certificates, Ill 

Removals  from  office  of  school  officers, 112 

Indian  schools, 114 

Charitable  institutions, 115 


488  INDEX. 

Pahb. 

Overseers  of  poor  to  report  deaf  and  dumb, 115 

Selection  of  deaf  and  dumb  pupils . .  * 115 

Selection  of  blind, H7 

Forms  and  instructions, H* 

Duty  in  case  of  defective  census, 137 

Appeals, 317 

Selection  of  district  libraries, 335 

Apportionment  of  school  moneys, 120  to  127 

"  of  forfeited  moneys, 335 

STATE  TREASURY: 

See  title  "  Distribution  of  School  Moneys." 

STATE  TAX: 

How  raised, 120 

STAY  OF  PROCEEDINGS  : 

Appeal  operates  as, 70 

SUITS  AGAINST  DISTRICT  OFFICERS,  pages  338  to  342 : 

Costs  of  suits, 338 

Tax  for  costs  and  expenses, 339 

Amount  of  costs  and  charges,  how  ascertained, 340 

SUPERVISORS : 

Custody  and  disbursement  of  money, 145  to  154 

Supervisors  to  receive  money  from  treasurers, .145 

Form  of  bond  to  treasurer  for  towns, 143 

Penalty  for  embezzlement, 146 

Disbursing  and  accounting  for  moneys, 146 

Accounting  to  successors, 148 

Town  school  fund 150 

Moneys  from  overseers  of  the  poor, 1«>2 

Alteration  of  school  districts, 185 

SUPERVISOR : 

May  be  trustee, •  •     *7 

Board  for  alteration, 19,  71,  74,  88,  91,    96 

Suits  against,  for  school  moneys 301 

Suits  for  penalties,  against  trustees,  149,  316,  317 

Forms  of  vouchers, I49 

SYRACUSE : 

School  laws, 457 

TAX: 

For  building  school-house 1,  1>  98,  229 

For  contingent  expenses,  erroneous ^ 

Note  cannot  be  received  in  payment, •  •  •  •  •  •  J 

For  more  than  $400,  to  build  house, *•*,<»,  ; 

To  pay  legal  costs, •  •  •  * 

When  levied  without  vote  of  district •*!  ™j 

Money  due  on  mortgage, ._ 

For  building  school-house,  who  exempt  from, 


INDEX.  489 

Paqb. 

For  purchase  of  site,  not  limited  in  amount, 41,  54 

For  stove  and  pipe,  legal, 61 

Ministers  of  gospel  exempt, 62 

For  site,  not  raised  by  instalments, 79,  99 

Items  of  expenditure, 94 

Tax  by  instalments, 67,  79,  99,  229 

Deficiencies, 234 

For  repairs, 259 

For  fuel, 260 

Tax,  without  vote  of  district, 266 

Possession  defined, 274 

Equalization  of  taxes, 281 

TAX  LIST : 

When  to  be  made  out, 22,  287 

Correction,  after  part  collected, 26 

Must  include  all  taxable  inhabitants, 29,  39,     93 

Contiguous  territory, 40,    93 

Tax  list  not  having  been  delivered  to  collector,  the  vote  to  raise  it  may 

be  rescinded, 55 

Notice  that  it  is  in  collector's  hands  unnecessary, 73 

In  making  out,  all  the  trustees  must  be  consulted  and  act  together, 95 

Deficiencies, -..-..- 234 

Property  exempt  from, 211,  259 

What  to  include, 39,  267 

Possession  defined, 274 

TEACHER : 

How  to  be  paid, 3,  82 

Wages,  debt  cannot  be  offset  against, 3 

Dismissal  of, 10 

Improperly  dismissed,  entitled  to  full  wages, 15 

Certificate  annulled  for  cruelty, 18,  35 

Notice  of  intention  to  annul, 24 

Legal  employment  of, 27 

Annulment  of  certificate  ends  contract  to  teach, 36 

Saturday's, 37 

Can  be  employed  only  by  trustees, 38 

Employed  by  one  trustee,  report  of  others,  when  implied, 80,  82 

Examination  for  license, 97,  165 

TEACHER'S  LIST: 

Teacher  not  keeping,  cannot  recover  his  wages, 2,  263 

TEACHERS'  INSTITUTE: 

Conduct  of, 175 

TOWN  CLERK: 

Board  for  alteration, ■ 19,  71,  74,  88,     96 

General  duties, , 184 

Alteration  of  school  districts, 188 

Notice  of  annual  meeting 205 

TOWN  SUPERINTENDENTS: 

Towns  transferred, 179 

[Code.]  62 


490  INDEX. 

TROY 

School  laws, 459 

TRUSTEES: 

Corporation  to  hold  district  property, 313 

Cannot  be  librarian  or  collector, 7 

De  facto,  how  far  acts  are  binding, 11 

Appointment  of,  set  aside  for  fraud, 25 

Annual  account  and  payment  of  balance, 25,  102,  314,  315,  316 

Correction  of  tax  list, 26 

Employment  of  teacher, 27,  80,  82,     99 

Have  no  lien  on  moneys  for  expenses, 27 

Notice  to  all,  and  concurrence  of  a  majority  necessary  to  validity  of  acts,     28 

Have  sole  power  of  making  contracts  for  district, 29,     66 

Have  sole  executive  authority, 30 

Have  sole  power  to  employ  teacher, 38,  80,  82,     99 

May  be  elected  supervisor, 47 

Division  of  public  money, 11,  17,  48,  52,  78,     85 

Levying  taxes  without  vote, •  • " 50.  266 

What  absence  will  amount  to  vacancy, 51,     63 

No  power  to  set  aside  proceedings  of  a  meeting, 55 

Admission  of  non-resident  children, 10,  45,  56,  95,  100,  310 

Removal  for  cause, 58,     62 

Vacancy,  how  filled 65,  105,  238 

Power  to  establish  schools, 73 

Duty  to  call  meetings, 9,  20,     77 

Contract  by  one,  when  assent  of  others  will  be  implied, 80 

Power  to  call  meetings, 83 

Office  honorary —  without  pay, 84 

Order  to  draw  money,  ministerial, 88 

Cannot  give  and  accept  notice  to  themselves, 89 

All  must  confer  and.  consult  together,   in  order  to  make  their  acts 

valid, 3,  9,     95 

Reports  from  joint  districts 180 

Annual  reports,  to  whom  made, 180 

Should  not  be  teachers, 99 

Term  of  office, 236 

Penalty  for  refusing  to  serve, 239 

Resignations,  to  whom  made, 239 

Powers  and  duties, 241  to  267 

How  their  powers  must  be  exercised, 242 

Calling  special  meetings, 244 

Notices  of  meetings, 244 

Making  out  tax  lists, 244 

Annexing  warrant  to  tax  list, 215 

Purchase  or  leasing  of  sites  and  building  house, 245 

Custody  of  school-house, 246 

Employment  of  teachers, 247,  249 

Division  of  public  money 252 

Exemption  of  indigent  persons, 252 

Payment  of  teachers, 251 

Rate  bill,  how  assessed 254,  259 

Repairs  of  school-house, 259 

Fuel,  taxation  for 260 

Blank  books  for  inventory  of  property  and  for  teachers'  lists, 261 

Teacher's  list, 262 

Power  to  levy  tax  without  vote  of  district, 266 

Assessment  and  collection  of  taxes, 267  to  301 


INDEX.  491 

Page. 

Renewal  of  warrant, 298 

Suit  against  supervisor  for  school  moneys, 301 

Annual  reports  of  trustees, 301  to  317 

Holding  of  district  property, 313 

Penalty  for  not  rendering  yearly  account, 315 

Suits  for  penalties, 316 

Libraries  under  their  care, 327 

Colored  children,  school  for, 343 

Union  free  school  law, 317 

See  title  "  Annual  Reports." 

TUITION: 

Of  boarder,  who  responsible  for, 45 

TURNPIKE: 

How  to  be  assessed, 84 

UNION  FREE  SCHOOL  LAW  : 

Pages 347  to  357 

UNITED  STATES  DEPOSIT  FUND: 

Income,   121 

UTICA : 

School  laws 465 

VACANCY: 

When  absence  will  amount  to, 51 

By  reason  of  imprisonment 53 

In  office  of  trustee,  how  filled, 65,  105,  238 

VALUATION : 

Where  new  valuation  should  be  made, 17 

Notice  to  be  given  of  new  valuation, 44,     73 

How  ascertained, 282 

Reduction, 284,  286 

VOTERS : 

Right  to  vote,  61 

Who  are  legal  voters, 67,  68,  81,  90,  209 

Challenge  of, 214 

Residence, 207 

VOTES,  ILLEGAL: 

When  proceedings  will  be  set  aside  for, 99 

WARRANT : 

Time  of  delivery  to  collector, 18 


492  INDEX. 

Paoi. 

WATERLOO: 

District  No.  1, 471 

WEST   FARMS: 

District  No.  1, 471 

WILLIAMSVILLE  : 

School  laws, "•  * 


>  1 

OUNIA 


UC  SOUTHERN  Ri 


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